Oak Ridge High School Shooting and Lockdown: This afternoon, a defective Alertus Pendant caused Oak Ridge High School to experience a false alarm that resulted in a Level 4 Lock Down occurrence. The Oak Ridge High School School Resource Officer Larry Dowdell, the Assistant Principal Russ Wise, and the Oak Ridge Police Department all arrived in the room where the alarm was initiated in a short amount of time and concluded that there was no threat in the vicinity.
In order to ensure that there was no other potential danger within the facility, the Oak Ridge Police Department decided to proceed with the process of clearing the building room by room. Students and staff were allowed to return to their fourth block as planned once the lockdown was released after the building had been cleared of any obstructions.
The defective pendant continued to cause lockdowns until our Information Technology team was able to stop the pendant remotely. This was the reason of the subsequent alarms that went off in the minutes that followed the statement that the “All Clear” had been issued. In order to prevent further false alarms, our Technology staff is currently conducting an investigation to determine the underlying cause of the malfunctioning pendant. They will work carefully to find a solution to the problem.
We would like to express our gratitude to the faculty and students of the high school, as well as the local law enforcement, for their prompt and important response to the false alarm. There is a sense of relief in knowing that in the event of a credible lockdown, our students and staff are educated to take all of the required procedures to keep themselves and their other safe. This is despite the fact that it was undoubtedly a terrifying moment for everyone.
