A lockdown at Midlothian High School has been lifted after a thorough, room-by-room search by tactical officers Friday following a threat reported to the school's principal, police say.
All students are safe, officials said, and no threat was substantiated.
According to the district, two students reported the threat to the principal earlier in the morning. The school was locked down out of an abundance of caution and the entire campus was searched.
"It's very hard when you have your children - they shouldn't be scared to go to school. They shouldn't have to go through this everyday," said Jessie Chase, whose daughter is a freshman.
At about 2:40 p.m., the lockdown was lifted. Students were dismissed at the normal time and buses were expected to run on schedule.
During the lockdown, parents who came to the school were moved from the campus to a nearby conference center where they anxiously awaited updates. While there, Chase praised the students who spoke up about the threat.
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"Whoever gave the tip to the Midlothian School District, I really commend them for being brave enough to give that information. To give that tip, because a lot of kids nowadays are scared to get that information, but their tip could’ve just saved a lot of peoples lives," he said.
Also there, Mayor Pro Tem Justin Coffman, whose daughter is a sophomore at Midlothian High School. Like many parents, he was was able to stay in contact.
"I've received pictures from my daughter of her sort of just sitting in a corner with her friends, asking me for information and I'm asking her for information," Coffman said.
With thousands of students enrolled at the school, agencies from surrounding communities were brought in to help search the building. Coffman praised their thorough efforts.
"Everybody's safe, everybody's sound, they're just sort of being very proactive, systematic," he said. "I have children in three different Midlothian schools and I know that they’re extremely proactive and they do lockdown drills."
He said the city continues to take steps to increase safety.
"The city of Midlothian and the school district recently, even as soon as this year, have hired in safety consultants and security consultants," Coffman said.
The district said Friday's football and volleyball games would go on as scheduled.
