A Boston elementary school was placed on lockdown Friday afternoon due to an intruder on campus, school officials said.
According to a letter sent to families, the William E. Russell Elementary School in Dorchester went into "Safe Mode" for about 20 minutes after an unknown, unauthorized person made it onto school grounds and spoke with staff. Boston Public Schools Safety Services and Boston police were both called in.
No one was hurt and few details of the incident were immediately available.
"The safety of our students and staff is our highest priority. The school briefly was placed into 'safe mode' to ensure no members of the school community were in harm’s way. We would like to thank the school staff, safety services, and the Boston Police for acting quickly to resolve the situation," a BPS spokesperson told NBC10 Boston.
Visitors are required to register at a school's main office and follow a visitor policy while on the grounds, the letter from Russell School Principal Derrick Ciesla noted. Those who violate the rules or disrupt school may be issued a trespass warning, which will require them to contact school leadership before showing up again. Those who do not comply with those warnings may be issued a trespass notice barring them from entering any school property. Violating that could mean an arrest and criminal charges.
This is the second security scare at a Boston Public School this month. On Dec. 6, an unhoused man was found sleeping in a classroom at the Richard J. Murphy K-8 school, also in Dorchester.
