BENTONVILLE — The Police and Fire departments will undergo active-shooter training pairing law enforcement officers and paramedics so potential victims can be attended to quickly.

The Walmart Foundation awarded the city a $96,729 grant to have Emergency Services Group International provide the five-day training in May.

Dispatch notes from active-shooter incidents across the country indicate a lag time of about 30 minutes or more between the initial 911 call and either the request for emergency medical service or when paramedics begin to function on the scene, said Battalion Chief Kevin Boydston.

“That’s too long,” he said.

Reed Smith, operational medical director at Arlington County (Va.) Fire Department, took the military’s Tactical Combat Casualty Care model and modified it for civilian use in active-shooter situations. It’s known as Tactical Emergency Casualty Care, Boydston said.

The concept pairs law enforcement and EMS personnel in teams of four. Two unarmed paramedics equipped with body armor and medical supplies will enter the crime scene with two police officers who provide front and back cover while the incident still may be happening, Boydston said.

Departments throughout the country are discussing the new approach, but only a couple are trained and equipped to use it if needed, said Mike Marino, Emergency Services Group International partner.

“In two or three years from now, this will probably be a standard for all departments,” Marino said.

The approach to active shooters have changed over the years. It used to be law enforcement would secure the area and wait for a swat team to arrive before moving into a building. Now, many street police officers are armed for an active-shooter situation and begin to apply pressure once they arrive on the scene, but paramedics will wait until the scene is secure before reaching victims, Boydston said.

Tactical Emergency Casualty Care could cut the amount of time to reach victims by more than half, he said.

Bentonville’s Police and Fire departments will be the first in Arkansas to undergo the training, Boydston said. It gives them validation as it’s the only program available of its kind, he said.

“In our business, if we’re going to put someone in harm’s way, we need to do a better job than say, ‘Hey, we went out and trained a little bit with this,’” Boydston said. “We need something that stands behind what we’re doing and says this is the way to do it.”

The Police Department has held annual active-shooter trainings since the Columbine High School shooting in Colorado in 1999.

“It’s changed quite a bit since then,” said Police Chief Jon Simpson. “This will be another change, another development, in the process.”

Combining EMS service into the training wouldn’t have been possible without the Police Department’s prior years of training, said Capt. Mike Smith.

“If you were to have asked us in 2000 if we could have done this, I would have said, ‘You’re crazy, no way,’” Smith said. “We were in our infancy of training. Thirteen years later, when (Fire) Chief (Brent) Boydston called and asked if we could do it, it was simple to answer then, ‘Absolutely.’”

Police training will remain the same for the entry team, but adjustments will be made with the medical entry team, he said.

The training could be applied to schools, government buildings or businesses, Smith said.

Active-shooter situations are police operations, said Fire Chief Brent Boydston.

“They’re in charge,” he said. “We’re just coming in with them to assist the victims in the incident.”

Ken Senser, Walmart senior vice president of global investigations, security, aviation and travel, said awarding the grant to the city makes sense.

“When we look at the thousands of associates living and working in Bentonville, this just comes down to an investment on our part in keeping the community safe,” Senser said. “We’re very pleased to know Bentonville will be on the leading edge of emergency response with this training.”