By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post

Just after 9 a.m. Friday, Thomas More Prep-Marian will have a lockdown drill.

The school has had lockdown drills every semester for the last several years. This drill was scheduled before the mass shooting at a high school in Florida in February.

TMP Principal Chad Meitner said the school did add an evacuation drill to this spring’s drill. Because of weather conditions, the outside portion of the drill has been canceled, TMP announced Thursday afternoon..

Mietner said local police officers will be on campus during the drill, so they can give feedback on the procedure.

O’Loughlin Elementary School will also do a lockdown drill at the same time as the TMP drill. Because of its proximity to the TMP, O’Loughlin would lock down if there was an active-shooter or other incident at TMP.

Both exterior and interior doors at the school will be locked for about a half hour. Teachers and staff will be asked not to move about the building, and teachers will practice barricading interior doors.

O’Loughlin also had a lockdown drill in the fall. Principal Vicki Gile said the drills help children and teachers prepare for a possible emergency. She said O’Loughlin will also do an evacuation drill at some point.

TMP and Holy Family have been participating in meetings with USD 489 as they meet with law enforcement officials to create and refine their crisis plans.

Both schools have sent notifications to parents about the drills, but the public should not be alarmed if they see law enforcement at TMP or students outside TMP on Friday morning.