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Oakland County presents Oxford High School after-action report, recommends liaisons, recovery centers and expanded training
Summary
County emergency-management staff delivered a nearly 300-page after-action review of the Oxford High School shooting, recommending on-scene liaisons, a county-led victim recovery framework, CAD updates, dispatch changes and expanded joint training for police, fire and EMS.
Tom Hardesty, presenting a nearly 300-page after-action review of the Oxford High School tragedy, told commissioners the county'led report was intended as a systems review "not an investigation" and focused on how to improve multiagency response, recovery and training. The report recommends placing a county liaison at the scene of major incidents to improve communications with unified command; developing a county-led framework for victim recovery and reunification centers; and formalizing roles in the emergency operations center so seats are "3 deep" for critical positions.
Hardesty highlighted recurring communication challenges in chaotic incidents and urged improvements to incident command and interagency information-sharing among the many police and fire agencies that respond across Oakland County. He recommended dispatch-protocol changes for active assailant and mass-casualty events, updates to the CAD system, increased joint training exercises (including integrated incident command courses) and consideration of protective equipment for some fire personnel.
Commissioners asked whether school-level safety measures (for example, metal detectors or school resource officers) were examined; Hardesty said the county report deliberately did not focus on school policy and that the school district prepared its own after-action report. Commissioner Spitz urged a timeline for implementing countywide policies and annual updates; he also proposed exploring a regional training center to centralize and reduce the cost of consistent, multiagency exercises. Hardesty said he expects an outline of a reunification process by the end of the year and noted some changes will take time and funding to implement.
The board moved to receive the after-action report and recorded the item for the official file. The presentation set a series of next steps for county emergency management and emphasized continuity of care for victims alongside operational improvements for first responders.
