Burlington Police Outlining School Safety Procedure To Parents

BURLINGTON, MA -- Whenever news of a school shooting takes place, parents are forced to think about the unthinkable: What happens if the next shooting is at my child's school? Burlington Police are hoping to answer questions about what would happen in that and a variety of other emergency situations with an informational meeting on Thursday at 7 pm at the Burlington Police Department. The meeting is targeted at parents of Burlington Public School students and will cover the department's Standard Response Protocol for emergency situations at schools in town.

The meeting comes after last week's shooting at the Marjorie Stoneham Douglas High in Florida, which left 17 dead and reignited the national debate over gun control. The Florida shooting was the seventh of eight school shootings that have left 20 people dead 41 people injured since the start of the year.

In a Facebook post, Burlington police acknowledged that the timing of the meeting -- during school vacation week -- was not ideal. they plan to make the information available in a letter that will be sent to parents. They are also planning to schedule additional meetings and Sergeant Timothy McDonough will be discuss the subject in an upcoming segment being broadcast on BCAT, the local public access cable channel.

"We hope that every parent and resident in Burlington will become familiar with the SRP," the department said in its Facebook post. "The SRP is the recommended all-hazards emergency plan that we recommend to all businesses and schools in Burlington."

Parents who wish to attend Thursday's night's meeting are being asked to register by using an online form. Parents can also access training materials online, and the department has posted a short video outlining the Standard Response Protocol (see below).

The Standard Response Protocol is a national program that helps police departments and school systems develop responses to a what range of emergencies, including weather events, fire, accidents, intruders and other threats to student safety. For more information on SRP, see this one-sheet handout for parent and students.

Watch an overview of the Standard Response Protocol:

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Photo: Jessica Gargaro, 15, left, and Sarah Goodchild, 15, both students at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, place flowers outside the school on Sunday, Feb. 18, 2018, in Parkland, Fla. Authorities opened the streets around the school, which had been closed since a mass shooting on Wednesday. Nikolas Cruz, a former student, was charged with 17 counts of premeditated murder. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

Dave Copeland can be reached at dave.copeland@patch.com or by calling 617-433-7851. Follow him on Twitter (@CopeWrites) and Facebook (/copewrites).