East Haven Police Talk With Students, Staff Over School Safety

EAST HAVEN, CT — East Haven Police have increased patrols at all schools as a result of the mass shooting in a Florida school. "Earlier today, and in response to yesterday’s tragedy in Florida, we (The East Haven Police Department) increased police presence at all of our schools and stopped by classrooms to engage staff and students in a discussion," said Police Lt. Joseph M. Murgo.

"We talked about Lockdown drills and how important it is to always practice them as if it was a real-life scenario and we spoke about their safety at one of the places they should feel the safest. Once we started the discussion, it was clear to us that a lot of students had questions and concerns that our officers were happy to address. We also made sure to address staff wellness too," Murgo added.

"When tragedies like this happen, we tend to take a step back and ask ourselves; what can we do as a community to ensure something like this does not happen here. We discussed the importance of speaking up if/when they suspect a student or loved one is capable of similar behavior and we spoke about the services available to them if they are feeling disconnected or depressed. The overall theme for today was teamwork and collaboration and we think it had a positive effect on those who participated. We ended the day with officers present during dismissal time to speak to parents if they had any questions or concerns for us as well," Murgo concluded.

Superintendent Erica Forti’s office released her own statement.

“Tragedies like what occurred yesterday remind us that we all need to be vigilant and attentive when it comes to school safety. Safety is all of our concern and we all take part in ensuring our students' safety. Our schools work closely with the East Haven Police Department on an ongoing basis to keep our schools a safe. As we grieve and feel deeply for these victims and their families, let us remain committed to practicing the safety and security procedures in place at all our schools.

If your child ever expresses a concern for a threat made or other frightening behavior, please let your school principal know. Together we will continue to work toward keeping our school community safe and secure.”

The East Haven Police Department will continue to train with every school in town to ensure the safety of staff and students and we urge residents to get in touch with us if they have any reason to believe someone they know either personally or on social media has alluded to this type of behavior. “If you see something, say something," Forti said