OFA incident under investigation; legislator praises response after being locked down

BY JIMMY LAWTONNorth Country This Week

OGDENSBURG --  Ogdensburg Police Chief Mark Kearns said police are investigating an incident at Ogdensburg Free Academy Thursday.

Kearns said the school was locked down after a Student Resource Officer at the building received a report that a student may have been in possession of a firearm. Although the investigation is still underway, Kearns said no gun was found at the school and no one was in danger.

“Today at approximately 2:50 p.m. the Ogdensburg Police Department's School Resource Officer assigned to the Ogdensburg Free Academy was notified of a possible subject with a gun on the school campus. The school district followed emergency protocols and went into lock down. The Ogdensburg Police Department responded to the school, establishing incident command and starting an initial search for any potential threats,” Kearns said in a prepared statement.

A unified response

“Assistance from the St. Lawrence County Sheriff’s Office  and the New York State Police quickly arrived. No threats were located and students were sent to the Dome for reunification with their parents. United States Customs, Border Patrol, Homeland Security, DEC Police, and the Village of Canton Police all arrived to assist as well. The Ogdensburg Fire Department and OVRS were on standby and assisted with parent reunification. No injuries occurred and this incident remains under investigation.”

Despite rumors circulating on social media, Kearns said there was not an “active shooter.”

“There was no active shooter at any time. The Ogdensburg Police Department is thankful for its partnerships with the Ogdensburg City School District, as well as our law enforcement, EMS/Fire partners,” he said.

Kearns said  the incident remains under investigation.

At this time no one has been charged.

Ogdensburg City School District Superintendent Kevin Kendall also released a statement and noted that the school was locked down as protocol.

“Earlier this afternoon, Ogdensburg Free Academy went into a lockdown after a student was reported to have had a gun on campus. Law enforcement agencies responded and swept the building for any potential threats. They have determined that the building is secure. No injuries were reported,” Kendall said. 

A look from inside

Among those inside the locked down school was St. Lawrence County Legislator Jim Reagen who serves as a Key Club Advisor.

“It was a little different hearing the announcement and waiting in a room to find out what was happening,” he said.

Reagan said he was with students who had certainly been through a lockdown drill before and as they grouped together in the room students on their phones notified him that it was not a drill.

He said he was impressed with students who remained calm and was even more impressed at how smoothly everything went.

“As I sat inside the locked classroom at OFA as our law enforcement community was responding to the threat, I was very impressed by the professionalism and composure of our teachers and staff who rose to the occasion despite whatever dangers might have been going on in or around the building. Our students made me very proud. You could not have asked for a better response by our young people who kept their heads, listened to instructions and followed them,” he said. “Like every one, I was relieved when Ogdensburg Police knocked on our door, entered the room and told us we would be escorted to the Golden Dome. StLawrence County Sheriff Rick Engel met me in the hallway. Heavily armed troopers, deputies, border patrol, city police and others were stationed at key points in the building as the officers went door to door checking each room.”

Reagan said it was clear that everyone was well prepared for this type of incident and that multiple agencies were acting as one during the event.

“As a county legislator, I was proud to see how everyone came together during this crisis. I know our law enforcement community has repeatedly trained for such an event at our schools.

 It was wonderful seeing how school personnel and law enforcement executed their plans to keep our children safe during what could have been a horrific tragedy,” he said.