ELKINS — With the number of mass shootings in the United States increasing, one local facility took the time Wednesday to work with local emergency agencies to be prepared if the worst-case scenario should occur.

Elkins Rehabilitation & Care Center worked with the Randolph County Sheriff’s Office, Elkins Police Department and the Randolph County Emergency Squad Wednesday to conduct a mass shooting drill at the facility located along the Beverly Five-lane.

“We worked hand in hand with emergency responders to make sure this drill was as realistic and safe as it could possibly be,” ERCC administrator Tara Shaver said. “We wanted to make sure we got this right.”

Shaver said ERCC residents, staff and other stakeholders were informed about the drill prior to it being staged. Facility residents were placed in their rooms before the drill began to ensure their safety.

“I thought it went really well,” Randolph County Sheriff Rob Elbon told The Inter-Mountain Wednesday afternoon. “It was a good training exercise for us and good for the ERCC. I thought it was a success.”

Shaver said she was pleased with how the drill went.

“There are always some areas where you can make improvements,” she said. “But we are confident the experience gained through today’s exercise helped enhance the future safety of both our residents and staff.”

The drill was part of an effort to improve and sharpen emergency preparedness procedures, a press release from the ERCC stated. All nursing homes are required to conduct disaster drills, and the nationwide increase in mass shootings led facility officials to conduct Wednesday’s drill.

“We all know that shootings can occur anywhere,” Shaver said. “It is our goal to be as prepared as possible for all scenarios.”

According to The Associated Press, a shooting in Bowdoin, Maine, where four people were killed in a home and three others were wounded by gunfire on a busy highway in a neighboring community on Tuesday was the 17th mass killing of the year in the U.S. in which four or more people were killed other than the perpetrator, according to a database maintained by The Associated Press and USA Today, in partnership with Northeastern University.

“Although rare, there have been mass shootings at nursing homes in other states,” Shaver said. “We believe readiness is particularly important in facilities that care for extremely vulnerable residents.”

According to the release from the ERCC, in 2009, eight people were killed during a mass shooting in a nursing home in Carthage, North Carolina. This remains the worst mass shooting in North Carolina’s history. In 2017, four people were killed during a mass shooting at a nursing home in Kirkersville, Ohio.

“We pray that nothing like that ever happens here,” Shaver said. “But if it does, we want to make sure we’re prepared.”