By Hannah Parker
Online News Editor
and Lizzy Tsuang
Executive News Editor
Mira Costa received two threats to campus safety within the past week, continuing the ongoing investigation by the Manhattan Beach Police Department and Federal Bureau of Investigation, Costa Principal Dr. Ben Dale said in an e-mail to all MBUSD parents.
The MBPD front desk received the first threat on Jan. 15 at approximately 10 a.m. through a phone call. The caller specified that the threat was a bomb threat and indicated that the bomb was located in a specific area, Dale said.
After receiving the threat, MBPD immediately notified Costa administration. Students and staff underwent a lock-in-place while eight MBPD officers and Costa security personnel conducted an external search of the campus and staff members conducted an internal search of their classrooms for suspicious items, as Dale had instructed in a staff-wide email. In the email, he specifically instructed staff members to look for wires.
After a 20-minute search, MBPD officers and security personnel deemed the threat not credible as they did not find any suspicious items during their search, Dale said. Costa Vice Principal Jon Shaw then announced over the loudspeaker at 10:30 a.m. that students could be released to nutrition and resume the school day as normal.
Costa administration received the second threat Tuesday morning while students were in class. The caller(s) sent the threat through a message on the front office’s switchboard, a telecommunications system in which people can call in messages to the school.
Shortly after Costa received the threat, MBPD deemed it to be non-credible. Dale sent an email to Costa parents informing them of the state of the most recent threat. In order to ensure student and staff safety, there were MBPD patrols on campus throughout the day, Dale said in the email.
Dale did not state if there was a connection between the two threats and previous threats Costa receieved throughout December. The district has not been notified of any arrests, Manhattan Beach Unified School District Executive Director of Educational Services Carolyn Seaton said.
“I am confident that we will be informed if any arrests occur, and we are hopeful that will happen,” Seaton said. “The perpetrator(s) of these threats caused a lot of stress on the part of Mira Costa staff, students, administration and district administration.”
Seaton said that if the MBPD and FBI find that the perpetrator(s) is/are a current MBUSD student(s), potential ramifications include suspension or expulsion.
The MBUSD Health and Safety Committee, a committee in charge of the district’s health and safety measures, is continuing to revise the evacuation plan and analyze current communication practices and emergency protocol.
Head of the Safety Committ Ian Uhalt announced the committee’s progress regarding the creation of uniformed evacuation measures on Tuesday at the Ed Council meeting. At the meeting, Uhalt said that there will be a staff-wide training on Jan. 27 in order to inform staff of the new evacuation procedures and a school-wide evacuation drill on Feb. 3 to practice the new procedures. The safety committee is continuing to make revisions to the evacuation plan and has not yet set a date to sumbit the plan to Costa and district administration for approval, School Resource Officer John Loy said.
“Student safety is our number one priority, as well as the safety of our staff,” Seaton said. “I believe that by examining our communication and evacuation practices, we can be even better prepared if something were to happen in the future.”
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