Thinking Ill. Active Shooter Drill is Real, Workers Texted Loved Ones Goodbye Messages

Dec. 15--It was supposed to be just another drill in the Monroe Building in the Loop on Wednesday morning, in this case what to do if a gunman was somewhere inside.

The announcement over the PA system said there was an "active shooter" in the building at 104 S. Michigan Ave. and people should seek shelter. No one reached by the Tribune remembers hearing the word drill.

Some said they recalled earlier warnings about a drill and followed instructions. On the 15th floor, however, workers thought the threat was real: They rushed to a back office that had no windows, scooted desks against the door and called 911.

While they waited for help, they left desperate messages for loved ones. "I got the 'Goodbye, I love you,' all that stuff," a husband of one of the workers said. He was among the people who called police, frantic.

Officers finally banged on the door about 10 or 15 minutes later -- and told those inside to put their hands up and walk out. They apparently weren't sure if there was a shooter, according to several of the workers in the room.

"We have the dumbest building management in the world," one worker said later, now laughing about an episode she described as "terrifying."

But building manager Paul Rades put the blame on the workers for not paying better attention.

"We followed the standards and protocol," Rades said, wearing a reflective vest as he spoke to reporters outside the building. "We notified all of our tenants a month ago and also all our tenants' office managers attended an in-person training two weeks ago. ... People need to listen to the drill and listen to their office manager."

Workers on other floors said they were puzzled by the way the announcement was worded. It's unclear why things unfolded the way they did on the 15th floor.

Several workers on the 15th said they heard "active shooter" and then "shelter in place," meaning stay where you are. Then someone thought they heard shots on the 14th floor, and workers started filing into the back room for safety, several workers said.

"It made it very real," one woman said, asking not to be named. "People were throwing desks up against the door because it didn't lock. There were no windows, which was good."

Five or 10 minutes later, a woman got on the intercom and said there was now a fire drill and everyone should evacuate. But that made the workers even more nervous. Some were convinced the shooter was holding a gun on the woman making the announcement.

"She said that with, like, escalating tension, quiver, in her voice," another worker said. "Then she just said it over and over and over for what must've been 30 seconds or a minute: 'This is a fire drill, everyone proceed quietly down to the lobby.'

"No mention of the disconnect ... with the armed shooter," the worker said. "No mention that the story had changed, just this escalating quiver."

People in the room decided to wait for police. One woman said she called 911 and said the group wanted "to be led out by a police officer. Otherwise we're staying."

The same woman also began texting her family. "I was on like a text chain with 25 of my family members, scaring all of them," she said. "I think that's maybe the scaredest I've ever been."

Her friend said she thought about texting her son but "I hadn't really worked out what I would say. Goodbye?''

When officers arrived on the floor, "they pounded on the door and told us to come out with our arms up," another worker in the room said. "So we were led out of lockdown, and they were under the impression that there was a shooter because they were responding to our calls."

Workers on other floors said they did not hear the word drill either but assumed it was. "I think that's where the confusion came in," said one man who works as a marketer for insurance. "They said it was an active shooter. Everyone was like, what the hell. I locked my door and stayed in the office."

None of the workers interviewed wanted their names used, saying they had been told not to talk to reporters.

Rades, the building manager, said about 700 people work in the building and there have been no problems with previous drills. What happened Wednesday morning was "blown out of proportion," he said.

Rades said his staff would evaluate the building's drill procedures. "We always like to see how we can provide our tenants the best safety.''

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