A police-involved shooting that led to a lockdown at Suncoast Community High School led to frantic worries from parents concerned for their children’s safety and frustrated by the lack of communication.
Riviera Beach police said Monday that a “massive investigation” was taking place at the school but that there was no threat to the public and no students were harmed.
A law enforcement source later told WPTV’s Michael Williams that one person was wounded and taken to a hospital after a police-involved shooting outside the school.
“I got a text from my daughter saying that there was a shooting, and they were on lockdown,” parent Addis Harrison told WPTV’s Chris Gilmore.
Harrison said she was texting back and forth with her daughter while the school was on lockdown.
Claudia Aramouni, the mother of two twin girls in the 11th grade, said her daughters sent her a text that they were in a locked classroom hiding under a table at the time.
“It was nerve-wracking,” she said.
Another parent sent an email to WPTV claiming Suncoast “mismanaged” the dissemination of information. Below is the full email sent to WPTV:
<i>”This morning there was an active shooter event at school. Administration at Suncoast mismanaged this. I’m appalled by the incompetence of school officials especially the principal. My daughter notified me at 07:17 am that they were in a Code Red, and that someone was shot. They were hiding in the library. I called the school no one picked up the phone. We did not get an automated call until 07:57 am. No communication with parents is a total FAILURE.”</i>
The School District of Palm Beach County provided a statement to WPTV at 9:31 a.m. that stated, in part, that an unknown man was shot in the parking lot of the school. Below is the statement provided to WPTV:
<i>”This morning during school arrival, there was a shooting involving an unknown adult male in the parking lot of Suncoast Community High School. No students or school staff were harmed in the incident. School administrators immediately placed the school in full lockdown. All students are safe, and the campus is secure. There is currently a multi-agency response on campus to investigate.</i> <i>Nearby school campuses, including Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune Elementary, Lincoln Elementary, Washington Elementary, and John F. Kennedy Middle School, were placed in limited movement. They are now all clear and will continue with a regularly scheduled instructional day.”</i>
Riviera Beach police said there was no threat to students or faculty at the school.
“All the students are fine,” Riviera Beach Councilman Doug Lawson, who was at the school, told WPTV. “All the teachers and staff are fine.”