Last month, one year after the Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings, NBC's Jeff Rossen of the TODAY show visited five schools in New Jersey to test their security. At three of the schools, the administration asked for his name before allowing him to enter and escorting him to the office. At another, a security guard stopped him before he reached the front door. When Rossen visited Tuscan Elementary School in Maplewood, N.J., however, he was reportedly able to walk into the school and wander the hallways for several minutes before being stopped. Afterward, the story set off a heated discussion from concerned parents.
During the same month that Rossen's story aired, Kirkwood High School went into lockdown early one morning after reports of what sounded like gunfire. It later turned out that breaking light bulbs most likely caused the sound. "During the search, police scanner traffic said that one of the search teams inside the high school had found light bulbs in a janitor's closet that might have fallen and made the noise," the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported.
Today, St. Louis' NBC affiliate, KSDK NewsChannel 5, inadvertently set off another temporary lockdown at Kirkwood High School while working on an investigation similar to Rossen's report on school safety.
According to the Post-Dispatch, "the man did not identify himself as a member of the media when he asked to speak with security. He initially gave his name and cell number and when the secretary left to get the school resource officer, the man left the office, district spokeswoman Ginger Cayce said. Officials called the number he left, but no one answered. This initiated the lockdown around 1:15 p.m. Students were huddled in locked classrooms with the lights off for about 40 minutes."
Afterward, KSDK posted a statement that the visit was part of an investigative story involving five St. Louis schools. According to KSDK's statement: "One of our employees assigned to this investigative report visited Kirkwood High School. He entered and walked his way toward the office, asking a teacher for directions after a few minutes. There, he asked if he might discuss the school's security. He identified himself by name and gave the office his phone number. When the security official could not be reached, our employee left the premises without escort. Approximately an hour later—after our visit—the high school was put on lock down. This lock down certainly was not the intent of our visit."
The Post-Dispatch noted that a Parkway school also reported a similar visit today. "In that situation, a man was buzzed into the office at one of the schools and asked to speak with the person in charge of security. But the man was evasive about his identity and why he was there, said Paul Tandy, spokesman for the Parkway School District. He was in the office for no more than three minutes before he left. Concerned, administrators alerted security and KSDK, where staff confirmed they had someone at the school with a hidden camera."
KSDK's story airs tonight at 10 p.m., though the reaction already has prompted other local TV stations to report on the scare at Kirkwood High School, as well as reported visits to the Parkway School District and Becky-David Elementary School in the Francis-Howell School District.
Update: Dr. Tom Williams, Kirkwood School District superintendent, sent the following message to families and staff members to provide more information about the situation:
"Dear KSD Families and Staff Members,
I wanted to provide this update to the lockdown situation at Kirkwood High School today:
At approximately 11:50 a.m. an unknown male came into the school office at Kirkwood High School and asked to speak to the school resource officer (SRO). The SRO wasn't available and the man gave his name and number. The man asked to use the restroom. The secretary directed him to the restroom, but the man walked down the hall and turned into a different hallway. At that point, the secretary became concerned the request to use the bathroom was a ruse to access the building and she immediately called our SRO. The SRO attempted to call the man to confirm that he had left the campus, but didn't receive an answer. The man's voicemail stated that he was a Ch. 5 reporter.
At that point, [chief communications officer] Ginger Cayce was notified called the news desk at Ch. 5 (multiple times) to confirm it was a reporter. The news desk wouldn't confirm or deny that it was a Ch. 5 reporter. Ms. Cayce told the news desk that we would have to go into lockdown if we couldn't get this confirmed. When it couldn't be confirmed, we had to go into lockdown.
We believe Ch. 5 should have notified the school office immediately after the "test" was completed. This would have helped our school improve security measures without going to the extreme measure of a lockdown and the panic and disruption it caused.
We will take this opportunity to review our safety measures and protocols and make changes where necessary.
We are obviously thankful all of our students and staff are safe, and appreciate your concerns and patience as we sorted through this difficult situation today. As always the safety and welfare of our students continues to be our highest priority.
Thank you.
Tom Williams"
