CLEVELAND, Ohio - Not long after a gunman opened fire at Fort Lauderdale International Airport last month, killing five, an airline employee in Cleveland asked his boss:

What would we do if that happened here?

Cleveland Police Sgt. Timothy Higgins attempted to answer that question last week during a training session for several dozen airline employees, who hope they never have cause to use it.

Among Higgins' suggestions: Be aware of exits and escape routes, know how to barricade a door, and don't be afraid to fight back.

Higgins is a certified instructor in what's known as the ALICE response to active shooters - the acronym stands for Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter and Evacuate. The protocol was developed by a Texas police officer for his wife, an elementary school principal, after the 1999 shooting at Columbine High School outside Denver.

The program's bottom line is this, said Higgins: "Just because someone's shooting at you doesn't mean you're going to get hit. You can survive these violent interactions."

But survival might depend on how you handle those first few moments of a crisis.

Higgins was invited to the airport at the request of Dale Baker, who supervises Spirit Airlines' operations at the Cleveland and Akron-Canton airports. Several employees, he said, were shaken after the shooting at Fort Lauderdale International Airport in early January.

In that incident, a Delta passenger shot and killed five fellow travelers and injured dozens more in the airport's baggage claim area. The shooter had packed an unloaded gun and ammunition in his checked bag, went into the restroom to load his pistol, returned to the baggage claim area and started shooting.

It was the latest in several recent violent attacks at airports, both in the U.S. and overseas. They're enticing targets for terrorists, not only because of the ability to induce panic among those affected, but also because of the potential to disrupt the global transportation network.

The airport in Fort Lauderdale was closed for nearly a day after the shooting; last year in Brussels, the airport was shut down for nearly two weeks following a terrorist attack.

Both incidents occurred in areas of the airports outside of security zones.

Greg Crane, who founded the ALICE Training Institute, said preparation is the same, no matter where an attack occurs. "You need to be ready, just like you are for any disaster," he said. "The only difference is - this is a man-made disaster."

His business, which is headquartered in Medina, has fielded numerous training requests from travel-related companies, including airports, airlines and cruise lines. Recently, he said, he's noticed an uptick in calls from houses of worship.  

Wherever you are - an airport, a stadium, a mall or a church - the first line of defense is to be aware of your surroundings, said Higgins. If there's a safe way to leave after an attack starts -- then leave.

In Hopkins' baggage claim area, for example, passengers and employees might climb through the opening connecting the carousel to the area behind the wall.

Take stock of where the nearest restroom is, or emergency exit, said Higgins, who took off his belt to show his audience how to use it to disable a door hinge to keep the door from opening.

If all else fails, he said, you might need to "counter" the criminal yourself.

This is by far the most controversial part of the ALICE program, and why some parents and educators object to its use in schools.

Higgins said he's not suggesting that travelers or airport employees engage in direct combat with shooters, but sometimes even a small distraction can save lives, he said.

Instead of dropping to the ground or attempting to hide behind a desk, said Higgins, it might make sense to throw something at the shooter.

"Ladies, you have those carry-ons you call your purses - throw them at him," he said.

Contrary to public opinion, he said, most shooters are not very accurate. "Police miss 70 to 80 percent of shots in these kind of dynamic events," he said. "And we train for them. The bad guy is not usually a highly skilled shooter."

He lauded the passengers who subdued a shooter on a train in France in 2015, preventing any fatalities; and suggested that patrons at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando last year might have been able to swarm the shooter before he was able to kill and injure more than 100.

The Virginia Tech gunman, Crane pointed out, reloaded his weapon 17 times during his shooting spree in 2007.

"You take some sort of action and your survivability improves tremendously," said Higgins.

Higgins' training sessions sometimes extend across several days and include role-playing exercises. At the airport, it took place around a conference table and lasted an hour.

Still, Baker, the Spirit manager, said he's already received positive feedback about the program from fellow airline employees, who are sharing Higgins' lessons with colleagues who couldn't attend.

Higgins said his goal isn't to instill panic or make people paranoid. "It's situational awareness," he said.

Folks who think such an incident could never happen at our airport or in our city have short memories, he said.

"People said it could never happen at Cracker Barrel," he said, referring to 2012 shooting at the restaurant in Brooklyn. "It could never happen at Success Tech. It could never happen at Case Western. It could never happen in Chardon."

It could, he said, and it did. Better to be prepared for the next one.

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