Orillia students kept after final bell after OPP initiated hold and secure

Ontario Provincial Police cruiser with lights flashing - File Image. (OPP Central Region)

Police placed two Orillia schools in hold and secures Friday afternoon.

The Simcoe Muskoka Catholic District School Board confirmed provincial police initiated the security measures at Patrick Fogarty Catholic Secondary School on Commerce Road and Monsignor Lee Catholic School on Fittons Road.

A hold and secure is a response to a threat or incident in the general vicinity of a school, but not necessarily on school property.

During a hold and secure, activities resume inside the school as usual, but all exterior doors are locked, and no one is allowed to enter or exit the building.

A letter to parents from the board noted, "This hold and secure is a precautionary measure, and the police do not believe there is an immediate threat to student or staff safety."

The board said the hold and secure went beyond the end of the day bell, meaning students were not be able to leave until it was lifted. Parents and guardians were asked not to attend the school to pick up their children until the school notified them to do so.

Police lifted the hold and secure at both schools just after 4 p.m., and students were released.

Provincial police in Orillia said a business owner reported seeing a youth with a possible firearm in the West Street North area, prompting the school security measures.

The OPP investigated and determined there was no threat to public safety.