On a Wednesday afternoon around 5:00 pm in a small suburban town just outside Metro-Atlanta an unidentified man called 911 and reported he was having a heart attack. The Fire Department was notified and since the firefighters in this county are cross-trained as emergency medical technicians (EMT's) a Fire Truck was dispatched. The fire unit arrived at a small house across from an elementary school and as the five firefighters entered the residence they were met by an armed gunman. The firefighters were then held hostage by the lone gunman.

A short time later one firefighter was released to move the fire truck at which time he notified 911 of the situation. The police and SWAT were immediately notified and arrived at the scene a few minutes later. An additional fire truck and ambulance were also dispatched to serve as support at the scene. Fire administrators responded and met with the Incident Commander at the scene. A Fire Department spokesperson advised the IC that "this was a typical emergency response and there was no indication that anything would go wrong. The firefighters went inside the residence with their equipment to perform patient care to meet the need of the caller.

The 911 Center received radio transmissions from inside the home while the hostage situation was going on. This is the transmission received from inside the home from one of the firefighters:

"(He has) multiple guns, multiple rifles," the firefighter said. "We're in a situation where we have an armed person and he is requesting certain utilities to be turned back on at his house. He is armed and we are in the room with him."

For several hours, the man in the home talked with the hostage negotiator and demanded that his utilities be turned back on. A Freddie Mac spokesperson confirmed that the home is in foreclosure and being prepped for a foreclosure sale. Around 7:30 pm, as darkness approached, the Incident Commander, Negotiation Team and SWAT were deciding what steps should now be taken.

• Explain your Response Protocol in this hostage situation.
• How would you classify the hostage-taker in this scenario?
• What, if any, danger signs were present in this scenario?
• What are your thoughts on the psychological experience of the hostages during this hostage crisis?