It's a scary scene law enforcement and mall employees hope they will never encounter, but always prepare for.

These groups used their protocols at Destiny USA mall for the first time on Black Friday.

Billy Beez Manager Kyle O. Tape is one of the workers who had to put his training to the test.

"Normally, it's a very happy place,” said Tape. “…Lots of kids, lots of adults playing together."

But on Black Friday, the night took a turn for the worse after a shooting at the mall caused chaos and fear among shoppers.

Tape says the 25,000 square foot amusement center turned into a safe haven.

"Because our park is so big, we serve as a place for people to feel safe on any given day, but definitely during a situation like this,” said Tape.

Tape says he and his employees have active shooter trainings and knew exactly what to do.

"My first reaction was to close our doors to keep our customers safe and call to find out more information,” said Tape.

While some hurried to hide, the Syracuse Police Department and other agencies sprinted to find the suspect.

"We're not trained to wait,” said Sgt. Matthew Malinowski, the Syracuse Police Department’s public information officer. “If someone is actively killing people, we need to get there as soon as possible to try and eliminate the threat."

Malinowski also says social media played a huge role.

"We were getting reports from people hiding in the stores, hiding in the theaters and they didn't know what to do,” said Malinowski. “We were immediately on Twitter letting people know what to do."

Malinowski says it's also important for the community to communicate.

"We're going to do everything we can as police to beef up our security numbers,” said Malinowski. “When you see tensions between people arising, notifying police as soon as possible to try to prevent that is something I'd like to see more."

"The goal is to keep everybody safe, kids, adults, no matter what is going on,” said Tape.

At this time, there is more police presence inside and outside of the mall.

The Syracuse Police Department and mall management will meet to discuss about how to improve the response in the future.

Some managers also hope to talk with higher-ups to work on better protocols and communication.