Royal ISD lockdown lifted after investigation into potential threat

PATTISON, Texas - Royal Independent School District closed all campuses and initiated lockdown to investigate a potential threat on Thursday.

The campus-wide lockdown has been lifted. Transportation and dismissal will continue per normal procedures and will be supervised by law enforcement. The district has canceled all evening school activities on Thursday.

Royal ISD released the following statement after the lockdown was lifted on Thursday afternoon:

"Royal ISD (RISD) received information on a potential threat from an individual not associated with the district. The threat indicated that the individual intended to enter a campus building to cause harm to students. RISD immediately reached out to law enforcement to investigate the threat and protect students. At no time were any students in danger. The district initiated lockdown procedures, preventing anyone from entering and leaving campus buildings. District lockdown procedures include not answering inbound calls to prevent the spread of misinformation and to enable staff to concentrate on students. As always, the safety of RISD staff and students were the priority. As an additional precaution, all evening school activities were canceled. Students were released according to standard dismissal procedures once the lockdown was lifted. School will resume as normal on Friday. The RISD police force extends its appreciation to the Waller County Sheriff’s Department, Texas Department of Public Safety, and Brookshire police for their assistance in this incident."

RISD says they received news of a potential threat to their campuses. The district is “working closely with local law enforcement agencies to take every step to ensure the safety of our students.”

Royal ISD sent this message to parents:

“RISD has received news of a potential threat to our campuses. At this time, all RISD campuses are on lockdown, with no one allowed in or out of any campus buildings. We are working closely with local law enforcement agencies to take every step to ensure the safety of our students. RISD administration and RISD Police are actively working with local law enforcement agencies and will continue to communicate with parents and the community as additional information becomes available.”

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.