With a recently updated emergency response protocol, the Burnaby school district is confident it is well prepared to deal with emergencies at local schools after a random stabbing at an Abbotsford high school left a 13-year-old girl dead and a 14-year-old girl wounded.
“It’s something that’s on the top of our agenda at all times and we review it regularly,” said assistant superintendent Roberto Bombelli of the district’s emergency plans.
While the plan deals with a variety emergencies, Bombelli said he wasn’t sure he could answer specific questions around how a local school would deal with an incident like the one that happened at Abbotsford Secondary School.
On Tuesday, a man with no apparent connection to the school walked in. By the time he was subdued by staff, two students had been stabbed, one fatally.
Following the incident, the Burnaby district sent a memo to its school principals and vice-principals advising them on how to address possible student and parent concerns, to look for changes in behaviour, especially in vulnerable students, and to keep an eye out for “concerning or threatening behaviour” around their schools.
“We know there might be some anxiety around the incident,” Bombelli said.
The district also advised administrators to review its emergency response protocol.
“It deals with intruder alerts, weapons, etc.,” Bombelli said.
While he said the district is well poised to deal with emergencies – having just updated its Emergency Preparedness Policy and Emergency Response Protocol at the end of last year – keeping local schools safe is a balancing act.
“I think it’s finding that balance between an open, welcoming neighbourhood hub and security,” he said. “Can we lock down all schools at all times? No. We’re always finding that balance.”
