What should you do if you're in an active shooter situation?

May 10—An active shooter is an individual engaged in killing or attempting to kill people in a confined and populated area.

In most cases, active shooters use guns and have no pattern or method to their selection of victims, which creates an unpredictable and quickly evolving situation that can result in loss of life and injury.

Such a situation occurred last Friday afternoon at O'Reilly Auto Parts on West Prospect Road in Ashtabula. A man with an automatic pistol, later identified by police as David Montalban, 54, of Ashtabula, allegedly shot two people, killing one. He also randomly shot at cars stopped at a red light and into a nearby houses until surrendering to police.

He's being held without bond in the city jail.

While law enforcement is usually required to end an active shooter situation, individuals can take steps to prepare mentally and physically for the possibility of this type of event to save their lives, Ashtabula Police Chief Robert Stell said.

While active shooter situations are often unpredictable, pay careful attention to your surroundings at all times, he said.

Although this was the first random act of violence in Ashtabula recently, it's not an uncommon occurrence nationwide, according to Homeland Security's website.

And, according to the FBI, public shootings account for a fraction of the country's gun deaths, but they are extremely terrifying because they happen without warning.

Most of the victims, like the ones in Friday's shooting, are not chosen for what they have done but because they were in the wrong place at the wrong time.

"In most instances, the best course of action in an active shooter situation is to flee and/or find cover behind any object that eliminates direct line of sight of the gunman," Stell said.

If you are indoors, run to the nearest exit, making use of available concealment. If unable to safely evacuate the building, hide in a secure area where access can be blocked or entryways can be locked, and, if necessary, fight back.

"If you are armed you are permitted by law to defend yourself and others from any individual attempting to engage in actions, such as an active shooter or a person attempting to harm others with a deadly weapon, that any reasonable person would determine may likely cause physical harm or death to others," Stell said.

According to Homeland Security's website, call 911 when it's safe to do so and give the 911 operator the following information:

—Location of the active shooter.

—Number of shooters, if more than one.

—Physical description of shooter(s).

—Number and type of weapons held by the shooter(s).

—Number of victims.

Friday's shooter was stopped before hurting more people in a busy intersection because spectators out of the line of fire called 911 right away, police said.

When help arrives, follow instructions given by law enforcement and first responders.