Houston office building shooting: Employees at Greenway Plaza put recent active shooter training to use

HOUSTON - In October 2021, employees working at Greenway Plaza building went through intense active shooter training scenarios. 

Employees working in the space say they never could've imagined they would be using the skills they learned in that drill just five months later.

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"I’m very thankful for the building, that they had training for us in these situations," said William Contreras.

Greenway Plaza contains dozens of offices where companies conduct business when a gunshot rang out in the building on Wednesday afternoon.

"We were told in those situations if someone is on your floor to escape, and no one came onto our floor, so we stayed away from windows and did what we were told," said one employee working on the fourth floor. 

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Assistant Houston Police Department Chief Larry Satterwhite says from what they can tell, the active shooter drill paid off. 

"In times of crisis, you revert to what you’ve been trained and what you’re thinking about," Satterwhite said. 

He says being mentally prepared for the worst can be the difference between life and death, and he recommends all companies take the time to implement active shooter training in the workplace. 

"A lot of the private industry, which is what we recommend, are taking the initiative to get their own employees trained in the event, God forbid, something like this was to happen in their building," said Satterwhite.