School back in session after Thursday's lockdown

With the exception of extra police patrols, things were quiet at Zephyr Cove Elementary School the day after a playground aide reported spotting a man in black with what looked like a gun in the rocks above the school.

Principal Nancy Cauley said Friday a Douglas County sheriff's detective was at the school and that there were extra patrol cars there.

"We decided to have outdoor recess," she said. "I really wanted to let the children know that this is a safe place and we're doing business as usual here."

Cauley said a few parents kept their children home from school on Friday, but otherwise the school was operating normally.

"It is a regular school day for us," she said.

Representatives of the sheriff's office met with the Zephyr Cove staff on Friday morning and answered teachers' questions about the incident.

"The sheriff's office responded extremely well," she said. "I'm very impressed with the service they've given us both yesterday and today."

According to Douglas County Sheriff's Sgt. Jim Halsey, the aide reported seeing a man dressed in black carrying something that looked like a rifle during recess around 11:30 a.m., prompting a lockdown at the elementary schoon and neighboring Whittell High School.

Douglas County School District Director of Human Resources Rich Alexander said the aide contacted the school's administration, who called the Douglas County Sheriff's Office.

"She took all the kids inside and contacted the administration," said Alexander. "The front office then called 911."

Alexander said after the call, teachers and staff followed lockdown procedure, securing windows and doors and closing blinds.

"The students spent about three hours under their desks," said Alexander. "Teachers tried to have them work on stuff on the floor, but it was important to keep everyone low."

Alexander said he was glad that after a thorough police search outside both Zephyr Cove and adjacent Whittell High School no man was found.

Douglas County's Special Weapons and Tactics team, along with law enforcement officers from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and K-9 officers, searched the grounds Zephyr Cove shares with Whittell High School and the area where the man was seen.

The Zephyr Cove branch of the Douglas County Public Library and Kingsbury Middle School, three miles away, were also searched.

The man was not found during the searches and students were released from school on time.

"We responded as best we could and we've all learned a whole lot," Cauley said.