Gordon Bell cancels class, citing pepper spray incident

Gordon Bell High School has been evacuated and afternoon classes are cancelled after someone used pepper spray inside the inner-city building on Friday.

An investigation into who sprayed a substance on the first floor of the school around 11 a.m. Friday is underway, said Matt Henderson, superintendent of the Winnipeg School Division.

“Because of the new ventilation system, it got through the whole school so we just decided to send kids home early,” Henderson said.

The school division leader was unaware of any related injuries. Emergency responders weren’t called to the scene.

The Grade 7-12 building, located at 3 Borrowman Pl., has been under renovation since June 2023. A new mechanical system was recently installed as part of the multi-year, eco-friendly retrofit.