Alarm 'Prank' Prompts Lockdown At Plainfield South

PLAINFIELD, IL — A student pulling an alarm as a prank prompted a response from police and a brief lockdown on Wednesday, according to District 202. The district confirmed the incident in an email to Patch, saying the lockdown lasted only a few minutes while police investigated. A Connect-ED message was also sent to parents at the school.

In the message to parents, Plainfield South officials spoke of the "false alarm" and said the lockdown alarm was set off at around 11:30 a.m. The message continues, "The person who pushed the alarm has been identified and found to have pushed the lockdown button for no reason," adding that Joliet police and school officials talked to the person and "there is NO threat or safety/security concern."

School officials said "appropriate discipline will be issued to any individual who falsely set off our alarms. This cannot be tolerated."

A reader sent messages to Patch asking about the incident, which also sparked social media posts asking why students were standing outside Plainfield South on Wednesday.

The incident came a day after Plainfield police arrested a student in another school district for a school threat. A Community Unit School District 308 student was charged with felony disorderly conduct after authorities say she made a social media threat "as an experiment to see what would happen."

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