Updates: Atascadero High School closed after threat. ‘I was really terrified’
.jpg "An Atascadero Police Department officer stands outside the gym at the back of Atascadero High School on Thursday, May 26, 2022. The school was evacuated due to a safety threat.")
Update, 12:50 p.m.:
According to a news release from Atascadero Police Department, there has not been a direct threat to Atascadero High School and the incident was isolated between two students. The school was placed on lockdown “out of an abundance of caution.”
The police learned of a concerning social media post made by an Atascadero High School student around 9 p.m. Wednesday evening. The student posted a video on Snapchat racking a shot gun.
The student lives in a rural part of the county outside of the city of Atascadero, the news release said. The San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office contacted the student and his parents confirmed the weapon was secure and the student no longer had access to the gun.
The Police Department notified the Atascadero Unified School District of the Snapchat prior to AHS opening. The school district was already receiving information about the social media post. The district then placed the school on lockdown.
The Snapchat post was sent to a specific individual and not directed toward the school. The post was shared with friends, and spread from there.
The investigation is ongoing and any charges will be submitted to the San Luis Obispo County District Attorney’s Office for review.
The police ask anyone with more information regarding the incident to call 805-461-5051.
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Update, 11:20 a.m.:
Atascadero High School’s campus will be closed for the entire school day, according to an email sent to parents via ParentSquare. All extracurricular activities on campus were also canceled.
Update, 10:10 a.m.:
Atascadero High School students arriving for class on Thursday morning were quickly turned around as administrators and police responded to a threat.
Lisette Escobar, an 18-year-old Atascadero High senior, and another student were in a restroom near the office when an announcement was broadcast over the school public address system.
When Escobar left the restroom, a teacher told her to go home immediately if she had a ride or to shelter in the library, she told The Tribune.
Escobar said she went back into the restroom to tell the other girl and then the two “ran as fast as we could to the library.”
“Once I got there, I found out that it was a school shooting threat,” she said via text.
Escobar said the librarian told her to have her parents pick her up from the senior parking lot near the gym, but she was able to connect with a friend who had a car and left safely.
“I was really terrified and filled with anxiety because I was scared something was going to happen as we were leaving campus,” she said.
“I didn’t feel safe at all, even after they told us that we were going to be OK,” she said.
When they got to school Thursday morning, Lonnie Lyon, a 15-year-old sophomore, and Jace Mcelhaney, a 14-year-old freshman, said they were confused to find students leaving in a hurry.
The students told The Tribune that they heard someone sent a video of themselves with a gun to another student. They later saw social media posts that a gun was on campus.
Senior Chloe Deskin, 18, had just parked her car near Atascadero Bible Church at around 8:20 a.m. Thursday and was walking to campus when she saw a group of staff and students near the entrance, along with a police officer blocking the road up to the school.
A school librarian stopped her and told her the campus was on lockdown, she told The Tribune. She was advised to go home and wait until law enforcement said it was safe.
Update, 9:40 a.m.:
The parking lot at Atascadero High School was empty Thursday morning after a school safety threat put the campus on lockdown Thursday morning.
High school staff were in the library, waiting to evacuate after the last of the students left, according to Atascadero Police Officer Ryan Sloane, who is patrolling the back parking lot of the school.
Atascadero Police Department spokeswoman Terrie Banish said that the school may be on lockdown for the rest of the day.
Original story:
Atascadero High School put its campus on lockdown on Thursday morning due to a threat against “school safety,” officials said.
“This morning we were made aware of a threat to Atascadero High School,” Atascadero Unified School District Superintendent Tom Butler said in a message sent to parents via ParentSquare. “Law enforcement responded swiftly and professionally to investigate the threat.”
“At the direction of the superintendent, Atascadero High School will be closed until law enforcement fully resolves this situation ensuring school safety,” Butler said. “When we are ensured that the campus is safe we may have a delayed start to the day.”
School officials said the district will be “pursuing the full legal and educational consequence to whomever is responsible.”
The Tribune was alerted to the threat by an Atascadero High parent. The parent said her child ran off campus once the alert was issued.
Officials at the Atascadero Police Department were not available to comment Thursday morning on the threat.
Deputy City Manager Terrie Banish, who serves as spokesperson for the Atascadero Police Department, said she will respond to The Tribune’s request for comment after a meeting.
This story was originally published May 26, 2022 at 8:49 AM with the headline "Updates: Atascadero High School closed after threat. ‘I was really terrified’."
