By: Ben Haber

An active shooter allegedly shot fires at Simmons College on October 5th, sending MassArt, Emmanuel, Winsor, Boston Latin School into lockdown. Just before 3 p.m, a Simmons College student heard noises that resembled gunshots and informed the police. Within minutes, the area went into a state of emergency.

“Run, if option. Avoid campus. Wait for instructions,” Simmons College team tweeted to protect student safety.

“People were shouting. Someone said that there was an active shooter, and we should run,” said a Boston Latin student interviewed by CBS Boston. Students found places to hide, cramming into small bathrooms and closets.

A SWAT team quickly arrived at the scene and discovered the noises heard were not gunshots; but, a group of Boston Latin students playing with balloons. Within two hours, the area and surrounding schools were declared safe.

“It scared me. I have some very close friends at BLS and know a few girls from Windsor as well. I’ve heard about all the recent shootings and (though it ended up being a misunderstanding), it reminded me that this kind of thing can happen right in our hometown,” says Rebecca Lipsitch.

Maybe at one time, we could hear loud bangs in a school zone and assume it ballooned. But the fact of the matter is that the recent shootings at high schools in Parkland, Florida and many more all over the U.S. have raised our sensitivity to threats.

We have chosen to raise our security at Beaver for this reason and many nearby schools have done the same.

Photo source: http://www.wbur.org/edify/2016/09/26/boston-latin-civil-rights-violation.