Turn the locks and stay out of sight, but don’t forget to turn off the lights! Students scurried into huddles among the corners of dark classrooms as they sought to remain silently hidden from the view of outsiders. On Nov. 8, an announcement came over the intercom just after 10 a.m., revealing that there would be a lockdown drill. 

     Lockdown drills, which state law requires, are conducted twice per year to ensure students know what to do if a real emergency occurs. For WAHS to meet this requirement, the drill was held on Nov 8, making up for one scheduled initially on Oct. 24 that was canceled due to a lack of available police officers at the time.

  During a lockdown, teachers and staff members are told to lock all doors and turn off all lights, while students are instructed to stay as far away from lines of sight as possible. However, lockdowns differ from a lockout, whereas during a lockout, the perimeter of the building is locked to keep the threat out. Teachers are allowed to continue class as usual.      

   As students sat in their classrooms, officers of the Albany Police Department went one by one, checking on each classroom to ensure students weren’t visible from the hallways. 

     Sophomore Jacob Jones sees the necessity of having lockdown drills in school. “In the case of a real emergency, we don’t have to worry about people not knowing what to do.”