FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA. (WSVN) - As the nation mourns the death of two students and two teachers who died after a gunman opened fire in a Georgia school, officials said law enforcement was notified because of a safety measure adopted one week ago.
The safety measure, known as a panic button, was created after the 2018 mass shooting in Parkland. Following Florida’s lead, states like Georgia recently implemented the button to alert law enforcement about an active situation at the school.
According to a teacher at Apalachee High School, someone inside pressed the panic button, which helped save lives.
On Thursday, there was a touching tribute and a flag was lowered to half-staff outside of the Georgia school. The surviving victims left behind messages of hope to the grieving parents.
Over in Broward County, which has experienced tragedy after a student killed 17 people in the Feb. 14, 2018 massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, leaders came together to discuss the importance of panic buttons on Thursday.
A law created by Broward County School Board member Lori Alhadeff in honor of her daughter Alyssa, who was killed in the Parkland shooting, helped save lives in Georgia on Wednesday when a gunman opened fire at Apalachee High School, killing four.
“I say Alyssa is saving lives,” said Alhadeff. “Every time that panic button is pushed, Alysa is saving lives.”
Alyssa’s Law requires schools to be equipped with silent panic alarms.
When Alyssa was killed in Parkland six years ago, her mother went to work to make schools safer, and just last week, Apalachee High School put panic buttons on teacher ID badges.
Just a few days later, those buttons were pushed.
“All of our teachers are armed with a form of an ID called Centitrix. It alerts us to an active situation at the school for whatever reason that it was pressed,” said Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith.
As the school went on lockdown due to the shooting, every second mattered.
ID badges are with teachers at all times, and the buttons are an instant call for help.
“Four presses gets our admin involved, and then eight presses of the button gets law enforcement sent to the high school and alerts that there is a physical threat on campus,” said Stephen Kreyenbuhl, a teacher at Apalachee High School.
It’s a lifesaving idea from the mind of a heartbroken mother.
“When the panic button is pushed, it’s directly linked to law enforcement, and it’s mass notification,” Alhadeff said.
Kreyenbuhl said An idea that turned into law was what saved lives on Wednesday.
“I think that this program that Apalachee instilled upon us 100% saved lives without a doubt in my mind. I recommend it to any school district,” he said.
Broward County schoolteachers can send an instant message on their computers and on their cellphones.
Miami-Dade school district said they would consider the ID badges for teachers but have a similar system where they can alert authorities immediately and give a precise location of a threat.
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