A shooting occurred in the food court of the Toronto Eaton Centre. One man was shot, two others injured and a pregnant woman was somewhat trampled in the chaos and stampede to get out of the mall.
The shooting, according to police and media reports, is starting to look like a gang shooting, and is an exceedingly rare event in downtown Toronto. The mall is one of the hubs of the city, a tourist destination, near cultural areas, and generally a busy shopping and leisure destination.
Early reports suggest that while several people were critically injured, the prognosis is mostly promising, including for the pregnant woman and her unborn baby.
One can never be truly prepared for each possible incident, but an event that leads to a large-scale, chaotic evacuation is a possibility in any public space.
Among the critical risk management observations will be along the following dimensions:
- Did the security staff react appropriately?
- Was the evacuation plan appropriate?
- Was there a plan and was it helpful?
- What, if anything, can be done to make a next event more orderly or successful?