Scott Young Public School and Lady Eaton Public School in Omemee were briefly placed into a ‘hold and secure’ on Tuesday morning (February 18).
A representative from Scott Young Public School contacted the City of Kawartha Lakes Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) after several students reported that they had heard what they believed to be gunshots in the area.
Officers from the City of Kawartha Lakes OPP attended the area to investigate. During the investigation, both Scott Young Public School and Lady Eaton Public School were placed into a hold and secure at 9:25 a.m. as a precaution.
A hold and secure is a response to a threat or incident in the general vicinity of a school but not on or very near to school property. A school’s outer doors are locked during a hold and secure, and no one enters or leaves the building, but classes continue as normal inside.
This is opposed to a lockdown, which is used in a serious emergency situation where a threat is inside a school or on or very near to school property.
The police investigation indicated that the students heard the noise while on the school grounds at approximately 8:30 a.m. Further investigation found the reports to be unsubstantiated and police deemed there is no concern for the safety of the students.
As a result, the hold and secure was lifted at both schools at around 10:40 a.m.
