Speaking of “epidemics.” IMHO, there seems to be “epidemic” of insanity at the core of these horrific acts. I have many opinions as to why this “mind or mindless set” is escalating within society, but I’ll leave that discussion to the experts.
This growing “insanity factor” makes these occurences all the more frightening, since there is really very little we can do to control this type of wild card as a society–confirming the “Safety is an Illusion” premise of the OP.