2:45 p.m. update:
A student at Black Hawk Middle School in Warrenton stabbed multiple people Thursday morning, Nov. 12, injuring two seriously, according to multiple sources.
Warren County R-III School District Superintendent Gregg Kinginsmith released a statement Thursday afternoon saying that the student had arrived late to his first hour class that morning and when his teacher let the student in, he immediately stabbed the teacher and two other students.
The Warren County Ambulance District reported two people with serious injuries, and according to the school district these included one student, who was taken to the hospital by helicopter. The other person seriously injured, which was apparently the teacher, was taken to the hospital by ambulance, according to Klinginsmith.
The student who allegedly stabbed the teacher and other students immediately ran out of the building afterward, but police quickly apprehended him and took him into custody, according to Klinginsmith.
“Black Hawk Middle School is currently a crime scene,” Klinginsmith said in his letter to families Thursday afternoon. He also thanked law enforcement, school staff, and parents for their patience as they were reunited with their children.
Klinginsmith said the plan was for the school to reopen Friday, Nov. 13. “Additional counselors will be at Black Hawk Middle School," he wrote in his letter. "Counseling will be an important part of the healing process for all students. We will want to make sure students have access to those services as quickly as possible.”
Paul Hartung, father of a BHMS student and another student at Daniel Boone Elementary, said he was getting ready to leave town to go to work when he received the first phone call from the school about the incident. He stayed and waited to try to get more information, then went to the school after receiving another message that the students were being released.
Although it took around three hours before he was reunited with both his children, Hartung said overall he thought law enforcement handled the situation well.
“I mean, it’s definitely something that we haven’t experienced before, I guess, as a community, something this serious,” he said. “So all in all, I think they did a good job.”
11:30 a.m. update:
The Warren County Ambulance District is reporting two patients were transported to the hospital with serious injuries following the stabbing incident at Black Hawk Middle School.
One patient was airlifted while a second patient was transported by an ambulance, both to local trauma centers. Both patients were in serious condition at the time of transport, according to the ambulance district.
A third patient was treated a and released at the scene, according to the press release. No ages or names were disclosed.
10 a.m. update:
All schools in the Warren County R-III School District will be dismissing at 12:41 p.m. today. All Black Hawk Middle School sports have been cancelled for today, according to a message from the school district.
Original story
Students and staff were evacuated from Black Hawk Middle School in Warrenton Thursday morning, Nov. 12, following an incident at the school.
“There is a large police presence at Blackhawk Middle School. There is no threat to the public at this time. The suspect is in custody,” the Warrenton Police Department said in a social media post at 8:30 a.m.
“We will advise shortly for pick up locations for students,” the police department added. “At this time, no students are reported injured.”
A few minutes later, at 8:38 a.m., the police department posted an update.
“There is a lot of misinformation that quickly comes out during an incident of this caliber. There are superficial wounds on one student and another will be flown to children’s. A teacher was also injured. Please allow law enforcement to work the scene as we work to get all students back to their parents.”
The scene at the school was chaotic shortly after 9 a.m., with parents arriving, students and staff being evacuated, a large presence of police and other first responders and a large crowd of people in general waiting in front of the school for more information.
“There is no active threat inside the school,” a Warrenton firefighter announced over a public address system at approximately 9:14 a.m.
“They’re going to take one classroom out, one classroom at a time from the school to the field house. Once they account for all the children at the field house, they will be escorted over here to the park to be reunified with the parents,” he added.
“So there’s no active threat, the school is clear, they’re escorting them out one classroom at a time to make sure all the kids are there, and then they’ll come over here. This process will take a little bit. We appreciate your patience.”
