Lockdowns over at Brandon schools

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This article was published 01/11/2022 (1393 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

BRANDON — A report of individuals with guns prompted temporary lockdowns Tuesday morning at Crocus Plains Regional Secondary School and Maryland Park School.

After the lockdowns and a subsequent hold-and-secure at the schools were ordered, Brandon Police Service posted on Twitter it had received a call indicating a suspect may have entered Crocus Plains.

Police later said the information was inaccurate.

Officers, however, conducted a search of the school for safety reasons.

In an email, Brandon School Division communications co-ordinator Terri Curtis said the division had received a report about the incident from police around 10 a.m., and were advised to initiate lockdown procedures until further notice.

Units from both the RCMP and BPS were on scene. The intersections of First Street and Maryland Avenue, as well as First and Patricia Avenue, were blocked off by police units, with officers armed with rifles standing nearby.

There were also officers with firearms in front of the school and toward the back, where the staff and student parking lots are located.

As time went on, concerned parents gathered nearby.

When the lockdown was lifted at 11:15 a.m., police told parents they wouldn’t be allowed in the schools to check on their children just yet, before relenting around 11:40 a.m.

At 12:09 p.m., the school division posted a message to its social media account stating both schools had returned to primary access status and people could leave for lunch, though entrances and exits would continue to be monitored by staff.

In a release issued by the division around 2:30 p.m., superintendent Mathew Gustafson said staff at both schools had temporarily moved 1,900 people into a “secure environment” and bus routes had been diverted from the area.

“It is my hope that parents, guardians, students and staff understand and have confidence in the continued focus on safety, the close communication between police and schools, the timely response, and the communication demonstrated in this incident,” Gustafson said.

— Brandon Sun