Bus windshield hit; school locked down
CREST HILL -- A possible stray gunshot or large rock that hit a school bus on Weber Road Monday morning caused a ripple effect that led to a lockdown at the Richland School District and the diversion of buses with elementary students to a safe location.
"We heard gunshots. ... We had a crisis. We wanted to be very proactive," said Superintendent Michael Early. "We are always going to act in the best interest of safety for our children and our staff members. ... We wanted to make sure the kids were in a safe haven. We didn't know if it was some kind of action directed toward the school."
(John Patsch/Staff Photographer)
There were no students on the bus when the window was hit by an unidentified object. The bus driver was not injured, Early said.
The school's assistant principal and support personnel met about 400 elementary students whose eight buses were diverted to a parking lot away from the school as a precautionary measure.
During the lockdown all staff and students were confined to their classrooms. All doors were locked and classroom lights were turned off. During a lockdown no one is allowed entry to or exit from the building. Phones were not answered in order to keep the lines open for emergency use, Early said.
The bus driver had just dropped off the junior high students at the school at 1919 Caton Farm Road and was on her way to pick up the younger students when her windshield was hit at about 8 a.m. as she drove northbound on Weber just north of Caton Farm Road.
Police took the windshield to the crime lab to see if it could be determined what struck the window.
"It's either one of two things ... a stray round, possibly from a hunter, or it's a rock," said Lt. Dwayne Wilkerson of the Crest Hill Police Department.
"We certainly don't think at this time there was anything malicious toward the school bus driver or the children," Wilkerson said. "It was a random unfortunate incident."
Lockport police and the Lockport Township Park District used their ATVs to find the hunters who were located deep in property off of Weber Road.
"We talked to a bunch of hunters in the area and got their stories. All of them were well into the field, Wilkerson said, adding none of them said they were close enough to Weber Road for a stray round to hit the bus. According to law, hunters must stay 300 yards away from homes, roads and populated areas.
The object didn't break the window, but cracked it. Wilkerson said the bus driver returned to the school because she didn't want the window to break while she was en route with students.
The district's three psychologists were available to talk to students throughout the day.
Wilkerson commended Richland administration for their actions.
"It was a good decision. Everyone did a good job responding to the scene," Wilkerson said.
Reporter Catherine Ann Velasco can be reached at (815) 729-6051 or at cvelasco@scn1.com /a>
