A social media post originating from the United States that threatened violence at a school prompted police to take precautionary measures at a New Brunswick high school Thursday.
According to the Saint John Police Force, they received a call regarding the post on Wednesday night.
“The post referenced ‘SHS’ in the wording and included a statement about causing violence in a school,” Staff Sgt. Tony Hayes said in a news release.
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Police notified school officials at Simonds High School in Saint John on Wednesday night.
The principal of Simonds High School sent out a recorded phone message to students’ parents Thursday morning advising them that a threat had been made against the school but provided no details.
Gary Keating said the school would remain open, but parents could keep their children home for safety reasons if they wanted.
“Further investigation has determined that this post was received throughout Canada and the United States. Many communities with a high school name with the initials ‘SHS’ were concerned that the threat was regarding their school,” Hayes said.
Police say the threat does not appear to be credible at this time, but extra patrol officers were assigned to Simonds High School as a precaution.
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News outlets from various communities, mostly in the U.S., have reported on schools with the name SHS increasing security or installing metal detectors on Thursday.
The threat comes one week after a shooter killed 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla.
With a file from The Canadian Press
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