Philemon Wright High School

By Trevor Greenway
Local Journalism Initiative

Gatineau Police are investigating threatening communications that were sent to Philemon Wright High School on Sept. 16. 

The alleged threat did not trigger a lockdown or an evacuation, and police said the school was secured by mid-morning. 

“There’s an increased presence of our police officers in that sector, and we work in collaboration with the school personnel in order to offer the school population a safe environment,” said Gatineau Police communications officer Patrick Kenney. 

Police would not disclose the nature of the threat and wouldn’t discuss whether or not it was targeted to an individual or the student body as a whole. 

The school sent out an alert to parents at 11:34 a.m. on Sept. 16 with a vague message about a “potential threat.”

“I am emailing you to let you know that we received information about a potential threat through social media,” wrote Principal Dodie Payne in the email. “We take all threats seriously. We have called the police, and they have investigated. At this point, everything is under control. The police will continue to work with us through the investigation.”Kenney said police “probably know” who sent the threat, but they are continuing to investigate further.