CORAL SPRINGS, Fla. – Coral Springs High School was placed on lockdown last Friday after reports of a suspicious person on campus.
Police quickly realized there was no threat and the all-clear was given, but the story took a twist.
It turns out officers didn't immediately have keys to enter the classrooms.
Lori Alhadeff, a school board member whose daughter was killed in last year's Parkland school shooting, is aware of the issue.
"They got access to the box, but when they went inside there were no keys in the box," she said.
The box she's referring to is known as a "Knox Box." It's where first responders can find master keys.
Teachers were reportedly sent text messages to open the doors for police, which is a violation of school policy because an intruder could be on the other side.
"It's a problem because law enforcement needs to respond as quickly as possible to an incident to get onto campus," Alhadeff said.
A Coral Springs police spokeswoman told Local 10 News the lockdown was only precautionary and, had the situation been worse, officers could have easily gone inside the classrooms.
The incident took place one day after a mass shooting at a California school and in the same county where 17 people were killed at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in February 2018.
“Due to statutory exemptions pertaining to school safety and security, our office is not able to provide information or comment,” Cathleen Brennan, a spokeswoman for Broward County Public Schools, said in a statement.