A firearm threat — the third at a Hamilton high school in less than a week — prompted an hours-long security response at an Ancaster high school Monday morning.
Bishop Tonnos Catholic Secondary School, near Garner Road West and Panabaker Drive, was placed under hold-and-secure at 8:42 a.m. “as a precautionary measure” after the school received a “concerning” phone call involving a weapon, Hamilton police say.
Hamilton-Wentworth Catholic District School Board spokesperson Debbie McGreal-Dinning said police were “promptly” called after the first phone call.
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A second call caused the school to upgrade the response to a lockdown, Const. Indy Bharaj said in an email. All security response measures were lifted by 11:41 a.m.
Officers searched the building, but “did not uncover any evidence to support the threat,” he said.
Students and staff remained in classrooms while the search was conducted, he said.
“The school day resumed without further incident,” McGreal-Dinning said.
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In a letter to parents, principal Maria Calabrese said board social workers were dispatched to support students.
“Please be assured that the health, safety and well-being of our students and staff remains our priority concern,” she wrote.
Police continue to investigate.
Central Hamilton’s Bernie Custis Secondary School was locked down twice last week over relating to two incidents police say are unrelated.
The school was under lockdown for several hours on Wednesday after police received information about a possible gun in the school. A teen was arrested and is facing multiple drug-related charges.
A downtown shooting spurred a second lockdown at the King Street East school on Thursday after a tip suggested one of the teens involved may have headed toward Bernie Custis.
Lockdowns are used when there’s a potentially serious threat or incident on school property, whereas a hold-and-secure is used when there’s a safety concern in the neighbourhood unrelated to the school.
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