Twice in September, threats of violence brought police to Lehigh Valley manufacturing sites.
In both cases, no one was hurt, but some workers said they were scared and unsure what was happening.
While public concern over mass shootings has often focused on schools and public places such as movie theaters and nightclubs, workers at warehouses, manufacturers and other large businesses also face risks of such violence, according to experts.
“An active shooter is looking for a ‘soft target,’ ” said Bubba Fatula, co-owner of the Fatula Group , a security consultant in Nanty Glo, Blair County.
If a warehouse or a manufacturer employs many people, and the workers are not trained to respond accordingly, they can become soft targets, he said. It’s not unprecedented.
In May, a shooting at a linen company in Chester, Delaware County , killed two people and wounded three others. A disgruntled employee committed the shooting, the county district attorney said. In 2021, eight workers were killed by a former employee in a mass shooting at a FedEx facility in Indianapolis.