Cops mum on reason for FHS hold-and-secure
Fredericton Police Force response uptown prompted security precaution at school
A hold-and-secure alert at an uptown Fredericton school Thursday morning has ended, the Fredericton Police Force reports, but it didn’t offer any details as to what prompted it.
Fredericton High School was placed on hold-and-secure status Thursday morning, the police force told the Fredericton Independent before noon.
“The Fredericton Police Force is responding to a call for service in the Prospect Street area, and due to the proximity to Fredericton High School, for safety purposes, we advised FHS administration to put in place a hold-and-secure while we conduct the investigation,” police spokesperson Megan Barker wrote in an email at 11:40 a.m. Thursday.
Hold-and-secure means no one is permitted to enter the school, and none of the students or staff members can leave. However, people can still circulate within the building.
Barker offered an update at 12:40 p.m., noting the situation had been resolved.
“The hold-and-secure at FHS has ended,” she wrote in the followup email.
However, Barker shared no information on the nature of the call to which officers were responding uptown Thursday that drove police to suggest the school be placed under that alert.
Anglophone School District West didn’t issue any alerts about the hold-and-secure on its social media channels, but spokesperson Jennifer Read told the Fredericton Independent on Thursday afternoon that FHS vice-principal Laurie Pearson advised students’ parents and guardians of the situation directly by email.
“This morning, at approximately 10:10 a.m., the school was notified of a potential threat related to a person in the school's proximity. Police were involved, we activated our emergency response plan within minutes, and the school went into a hold-and-secure,” Pearson wrote in the email.
She reported that classes continued, but noted that people’s movements within the school were limited, and that no one was allowed to exit or enter the building.
“At approximately 11:30 a.m. the hold-and-secure was lifted, and we were given the all-clear from the police,” the vice-principal wrote.
“I am sharing this message to let you know there was no harm to any students or staff.”
Read said the message was sent shortly after 11:30 a.m., just after the hold-and-secure status was lifted.
Don MacPherson can be contacted at ftonindependent@gmail.com.