Gunshot report places SRSS into lockdown

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This article was published 23/05/2019 (1799 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Hanover School Division superintendent Randy Dueck credited Steinbach RCMP for their quick response on Friday afternoon, after a report of gunshots being fired in the vicinity of Steinbach Regional Secondary School, which ultimately turned out to be a false alarm.

Dueck said shortly before 2:40 p.m. a motorist driving on McKenzie Avenue reported hearing gunshots near the school.

Police notified the school and it was immediately placed in lockdown. Other Steinbach schools were also put into “hold and secure”.

Dueck said police arrived quickly and moved through the school. He added a residential unit across the street was searched as well.

“It didn’t take them too long to determine that a shot hadn’t been fired and maybe, in all likelihood, it was something like a motorcycle backfiring,” Dueck said.

By 2:55 p.m., Dueck said RCMP advised the school was safe. Early dismissals were slightly delayed by the incident, he said, but otherwise the end of the school day proceeded as normal.

He said guidance counsellors are available to students and staff.

“For some students that may have seen the way that the RCMP came into the building…that has caused a little bit of anxiety for some students. They didn’t come in delicately, they came in seriously. The response was absolutely the right response but still it’s disconcerting to see that.”