New Halifax elementary school to be built with emergency lockdown system

A new Halifax elementary school is set to come equipped with a state-of-the-art security system, including a lockdown system that comes with blue strobing lights, automated announcements and an illuminated external warning sign.

The details are contained in a tender issued by Nova Scotia’s department of transportation and infrastructure renewal last Thursday.

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The school, which has yet to be named, will be built in Halifax’s south-end at 6141 Watt Street — the former location of the LeMarchant-St. Thomas Elementary School — and will serve students from kindergarten to Grade 6.

The lockdown system will be used to alert students and staff in the case of a potential threat against the school.

According to documents contained in the tender, the system will be activated at the push of a button, causing the lights to begin strobing and the system announcing that the school has been placed in lockdown.

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The external sign will also be activated, displaying the text “School in lockdown” and “Do not enter” in bright red letters.

The system will also send a signal to a door access control panel, restricting access only to those with verified key cards.

A reset button will deactivate the system when the lockdown is over.

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According to an education department spokesperson, the system is expected to cost approximately $25,000, which will be “negligible” to the cost of the school’s construction.

The spokesperson said that it’s expected that 13 schools across the province have – or will have once they open — similar systems in place.

The new school is expected to open in September 2019.