College President Luis Sanchez led a moment of silence to honor the victims of the Umpqua Community College shooting that took place on Oct. 1, and left 10 people, including the shooter, dead.

Sanchez, along with staff and students, gathered near the flagpole at 11 a.m. on Thursday and reflected on the tragedy and its impact.

“I’m devastated by it,” Sanchez said. “It haunts us because it’s happening so often. Our first priority is to maintain a safe environment for our students and employees and it’s so hard to know where tragedy is going to strike.”

Joseph Hernandez, a first year business major, attended the moment of silence and felt it was impactful.

“Other than 9/11, schools don’t really do recognitions anymore, it’s a big impact,” Hernandez said. “I try to put myself in their shoes, if something like that were to happen at Moorpark, [it would be] tragic.”

Sanchez spoke about the emergency protocols and drills the college has in place, and if there’s anything to be learned.

“We spend a lot of time reviewing our emergency protocols, we do emergency drills,” Sanchez said. “We pay a lot of attention to it, but even still, I don’t think any of those things would have prevented it.”

Sanchez feels that there are effective protocols in place at Moorpark. He also said the shooter was at UCC for only a few days, and that may be why he slipped past their protocols.

He also expressed condolences and hope for the future.

“Best thoughts go to our victims and families,” Sanchez said. “May we have wisdom, grace [and] strength. May we never encounter the tragedy.”