Illinois State Police Troopers, armed with assault rifles and bulletproof vests, guard the perimeter of Dallas City Elementary School on Thursday.
A report of an intruder triggered a massive police response, full scale evacuation, and a lockdown at Dallas City Elementary School in Dallas City, Illinois.
Pam Tate, a reading volunteer at the school, was inside the building when the intruder alarm was signaled at around 9:15 am.
“Over the loudspeaker they said ‘[intruder] in the school, lockdown’,” Tate told KBUR, “Once we got the kids all in one section [of the room] close to one of the windows, so that they could get out if they had to, the teacher barred all of the doors…and the kids each got one item, so that if something happened they could throw it at the intruder.”
Students were evacuated from the school, escorted in groups by policemen armed with assault rifles and bulletproof vests. Students were loaded from the school onto buses, holding their hands in the air as they approached. According to scanner reports, one teacher apparently had brought her students to her house close to the school when the alarm was triggered.
Hancock County Sheriff Scott Bentzinger says that armed police from at least five different agencies swept the building. It was determined that the building was clear and that there was no intruder inside.
Bentzinger told reporters, “There was an alarm activated from the school and law enforcement responded…law enforcement arrived, searched the building and found that everything was secure.”
It’s not clear who exactly signaled the intruder alarm, or if there was ever a threat in the first place.
There was a lot of intial confusion regarding the incident. Dallas City Elementary School officials were planning an armed intruder drill later this month, and had sent home a memo with children informing their parents of that drill. Many parents believed that the incident was that drill, but Superintendent Ryan Olson says that it was just an unfortunate coincidence.
“This was not a drill,” said Olson, “There was a report of an intruder in the building, so we activated our emergency response plan. Law enforcement was called, they searched and cleared the building. Students and staff followed the emergency response plan very well. At no time were they in any danger.”
Classes resumed just before 12:30 pm. Every single on duty State Trooper from Illinois State Police District 14 responded along with Sheriff’s deputies from Hancock and Henderson Counties, and police from as far away as Oquawka.
