Recent shootings in Nebraska and Colorado have spurred Stamford police to let the public know they have a plan in place to deal with ?active shooters.?

Active shooters are people who go to public places with the intent to kill as many people as possible. The recent shootings at a Nebraska mall and two locations in Colorado are tragic examples of sprees involving active shooters. Stamford police want the public to know that they have a plan of action should a similar situation erupt locally.

Sgt. Tom Wolff, of the Stamford Police Department, says the new training officers will go through training that will teach them to stop active shooters as quickly as possible, unlike the old training which taught officers to secure the perimeter and call the SWAT team. Nearly one-third of Stamford?s police officers have gone through the training, and officials say they hope eventually all officers will take part.

?Remember, they?re going in there almost with a terrorist mentality,? Sgt. Wolff says of active shooters. ?Our job is basically to stop then from doing what they?re doing. Stop that threat as quickly as we can.?

Stamford police officers use blue guns and bullets filled with colored detergent to train in live active shooter situations, a procedure they started after the Columbine High School shootings in 1999. They?ve also started using military-grade helmets and flack vests that offer more protection than standard police equipment.

?If we're going to ask our officers to go in and confront a man with an assault rifle in a school or a mall or a place of business or whatever, he's got to be equipped to handle it,? Lt. Sean Cooney, from the Stamford Police Department says.

For an interview with Sgt. Wolff about the new emergency response plan, go to Channel 612 on your iO cable box and select ?iO Extra.?