Lynn police finish lockdown drills

LYNN – Lynn police announced Tuesday officers have completed “lockdown drills” in every city school in an effort keep students vigilant and safe.The lockdown drill is only one part of the police department’s “School Emergency Operations Plan” – a coordinated effort to keep kids out of harm’s way if an armed person is on or close to school grounds.The efforts come after a shooting occurred May 9 outside Classical High School on O’Callaghan Way, resulting in a lockdown.”It reflects a continuing commitment to work in partnership with the Lynn public schools to improve safety,” said Lt. William Sharpe, police spokesman.Sharpe said every public school in the city has performed at least one full-scale lockdown drill in the past two months. Police won’t release specifics about the drills but oftentimes it involves teachers locking doors and students hiding under desks.There are 14,000 students who attend Lynn’s public schools.”It’s a milestone achievement,” Sharpe said. “It’s been a major part of [our] plan since the beginning of the school year.”Sharpe said each school has a pre-designated emergency response team, who coordinated the drills with school resource officers – Lynn police officers stationed in the schools – as well as police sergeants.An evaluation form was filled out at the end of every lockdown drill.