Moments before the beginning of second lunch, KHS went on soft lockdown after three unauthorized persons arrived on campus Oct. 17. Teachers were asked to refrain from releasing their students from their classrooms, but not told to lock their classroom doors as in the case of a hard lockdown.

According to Dr. Michael Havener, principal, the group, which consisted of two adults and one minor, parked on a street adjacent to Essex Ave. and made their way into the building. Administrators spotted them, recognizing that they were not KHS students, and pursued the group outside where they were met and detained by Kirkwood Police Department [KPD] at the Dougherty Ferry parking lot. Havener said the situation was already outside and under control by the time the soft lockdown went into effect, and that no KHS students or staff other than responding administrators had interacted with the young adults on campus.

The individuals in question were not in possession of any weapons, and had no intention to harm anyone, according to Havener. Nearly an hour after the incident, Havener announced that there was no threat to safety during the incident. He sent an email to KSD recipients explaining the situation, and thanked KPD and administrators for their quick response.

This article will be updated as more information is released.