LAFAYETTE, La. (KLFY)- Parents say they are still upset about yesterday’s lockdown at Lafayette High School.
The day-long lockdown was put in effect after an anonymous threatening phone call made toward the campus.
“I was also able to communicate with my son through his cell phone so that gave us peace, but now the whole situation is done, I am a little disheartened that we don’t know what went on,” a Lafayette High parent said.
Another added, “I’m really worried, and it’s a fear that I live with every day when I’m sending my kids to school every day and now it just got very very real.”
On Friday, Lafayette Parish School System administrators has released an additional statement to parents, students and staff about the daylong lockdown.
The events that happened on the campus of Lafayette High School yesterday were concerning for everyone involved.
We understand the frustration of parents, students, and staff when we are unable to share the details of events in order to maintain the integrity of ongoing investigations.
In the best interest of student and staff safety, it is our duty to follow the safety protocols in our crisis management plan. Be assured, we will communicate with you during an event as quickly and efficiently as possible.
Unfortunately, rumors and false information were disseminated and we understand that this increased confusion and concern. As we learned of misinformation, we communicated via pace calls to parents in an attempt to clarify and dispel rumors.
We would like to thank local law enforcement for their quick response and actions yesterday. We would also like to extend thanks to the staff, students, and parents who remained calm and followed safety procedures.
Our policies and procedures are in place to maximize student and school safety. Collaboratively, law enforcement along with school and district staff maintained high levels of safety and security for everyone on the Lafayette High School campus.
“I immediately tried to text my son and I didn’t get a response,” said one LHS parent. “I texted him two more times with no response.”
One mother said she was unable to communicate with her child because his phone was taken away by his teacher and not given back until dismissal.
“They should not have taken our children’s phones away and I’ve come to find out that it wasn’t school-wide. It was only in certain classes and I’m very disheartened by that. If this turned out differently if this is a real deal situation where they was someone in school doing something. I mean that could’ve been my last way to get in touch with my son,” one woman said.
LPSS released a statement Thursday evening saying because of the cafeteria’s location on an open air campus, they were unable to safely move students across campus to provide lunch.
One parent is just thankful her child got home safely.
“I’d like to reassure everyone just like, our students didn’t eat, the teachers didn’t eat the counselors didn’t eat. They were all on lockdown as well. The officers spent all day out there as well so I’m just thankful for all of those people and if we miss a meal and save a life, I’m okay with that,” added another parent.
