Two recent “inadvertent” lockdowns at a middle school unnerved several teachers and students and prompted Marble Falls ISD administrators to provide reassurances to the community.
The series of events that tripped an alarm system twice unfolded on Wednesday, Sept. 20 at Marble Falls Middle School (MFMS) on two different occasions in one day.
On social media, the district wrote: “At 10:58am, Marble Falls Middle School was placed into lock down due to a construction error. While making a repair in the front office, a wire connecting the emergency lockdown system made contact with a drill.”
Then, less than half an hour later: “At 11:21am, Marble Falls Middle School experienced another false emergency lockdown due to the initial construction repair. Everyone is safe and secure, and we are working to correct the wiring.”
The district post further reassured their social media followers that “Everyone is safe and secure. Classrooms are cleared.” The “false” lockdowns preceded a planned afternoon active shooter drill that was canceled as a result.
Grandparents Bill and Ann Edwards were among concerned citizens who reached out to The Highlander to express their dismay about what occurred. The couple shared that they have a grandson who attends MFMS.
“The reality is the teachers were extremely upset and so were the children,” Ann Edwards said.
She understood that neither teachers nor students realized what had happened until after the fact and believed “an active shooter” was in the building.
“The kids are daily aware of the danger that they're in,” she said. “To have on top of it, a drill that was accidental, and all the staff that they (the students) were with thought it was for real.”
Bill Edwards expressed concerns about reports of staff members and children becoming visibly upset at what transpired.
“If the teachers know it's a drill, they're not going to be sobbing,” he said.
That afternoon parents received a mass email from the principal, detailing the occurrence. The correspondence read:
Dear Marble Falls Middle School Parents and Caring Adults,
This morning at 10:58am and again at 11:21am, an emergency lockdown was unintentionally activated at Marble Falls Middle School due to a construction error. While repairs were being made in the front office, a wire connecting the emergency lockdown system made contact with a drill bit.
As always, safety and security of our students and staff is top priority. We are thankful to have these emergency systems in place and available at a moment’s notice. The lockdown mechanism was accidentally activated in this case and was assessed and quickly lifted.
We had previously scheduled safety drills today at 1:15pm. The lockdown portion of the safety drills is considered complete following this morning’s inadvertent lockdown. More importantly, students and staff responded quickly and safely and we are very proud of the maturity they continue to show in safety situations. The remaining safety drills will be completed at a later time including shelter in place, bad weather, and perimeter alert drills as previously scheduled.
Should you have any questions, please contact Marble Falls Middle School at 830-693-4439.
Respectfully,
Rudy Gonzalez
Principal
MFMS
Ann Edwards believes more needs to be done.
“There was no leadership telling the children anything or to debrief,” she said. “Going forward I want to know what if a child is in the bathroom or in the library – not inside a room that can be locked. What does that child do, who thinks it's 'active (active shooter)?'
“These are children today who are acutely aware of the danger that they're in. We've got a lot of potential PTSD among the children,” she added. “What about taking care of the mental health of the staff and the children?”