Westford Academy Students Dismissed Due to Threat

UPDATE, 4:42 p.m. Classes will resume at Westford Academy at 7:35 a.m. on May 7, according to school officials. Access to the building is closed for the evening, as a safety precaution. Principal James Antonelli issued the following statement earlier today: 

Good afternoon,

UPDATE, 3:09 p.m. The K9 unit is clearing from the scene of the school, according to scanner chatter. 

UPDATE, 3:03 p.m. Police shift changes are underway at the Westford Academy. According to scanner chatter, police officers are going to other schools around the district.

UPDATE, 2:05 p.m. A K9 unit is still searching Westford Academy's grounds. The K9 officer was accidentally locked out of the school via the back entrance of the building and requested to be let back in, according to scanner chatter. All of the school's activities have been cancelled, including sports games. 

UPDATE, 1:35 p.m. Superintendent Olsen confirmed to a Lowell Sun reporter that Academy staffers were asked to assist first responders in looking for anything out of the ordinary inside the building. He noted that they “intimately know the building” and a number of the employees did volunteer to help. 

UPDATE, 1:15 p.m. A conference call is being held between police and others to discuss the threat investigation. 

UPDATE, 12:57 p.m. A K9 unit is at Westford Academy to assist with the search. Some police are being dismissed from the scene. 

UPDATE, 12:50 p.m. Police have just radioed everyone on portables and told them to “clear the building.”

UPDATE, 12:46 p.m. Police are looking to gain access to a locked room in the library, according to scanner chatter.

UPDATE, 12:36 p.m. Police and firefighters are being asked to "regroup" in front of the office of the school. 

UPDATE, 12:32 p.m. Command officials are being asked to come to the office to assist with the investigation. Others are searching for any threats within the school. 

UPDATE, 12:27 p.m. A student reportedly took a picture of the threat that was written on a bathroom wall and is now reporting the information to police.

The first post is below: 

The Westford Police Department has confirmed that students at Westford Academy were dismissed earlier today due to an unknown threat.

No one in the police department was available for comment about the threat but a staffer did confirm that there was a threat at the school. 

Everett V. Olsen Jr., the superintendent of the Westford Public Schools, was not available to comment at post time. His administrative assistant stated that he had just headed to the school to evaluate the situation. 

According to scanner chatter, an incident command has been set up in front of the school while firefighters and police evaluate the threat.

All the buses have cleared the students from the school, according to officials.

Westford Patch will update this post when more information becomes available.