A Terrifying Friday: When a Normal Class Turned Into a Nightmare

# A Day I'll Never Forget: Real Lockdowns I Experienced at School

It was a typical, boring day in calculus class. It was Friday, 7th period, and the week was almost over. Spring break was just around the corner, and everyone was getting antsy in their seats. I could tell that nobody was really paying attention. Luckily, we didn’t have a test that day like some of my friends did in other classes. Instead, our laid-back teacher decided to let us play games on *Sporcle.com*.

As we were doing a brand logo quiz, I remember the exact moment when everything changed. My friend had just answered "Adidas" when the dean's voice came over the loudspeaker — panicked and frantic. He told all teachers that **this was not a drill** and to immediately initiate a lockdown.

Chills ran down my spine. Even our relaxed teacher looked panicked as he rushed to turn off the lights and ushered us to the back corner of the room.

We sat in total silence. Within two minutes, the usual buzzing from the back panel in the classroom stopped — they must have cut the power. We all exchanged terrified glances, realizing this was serious.

A few minutes later, we heard a man screaming at the top of his lungs in the hallway. Two girls started crying, which only made the fear worse. As the screaming got closer, the man began banging violently on the lockers, yelling, **"I'll kill all of you!"**

The banging moved to our classroom door. One of the crying girls screamed, "No!" The man pounded harder, screaming, **"Open up!"**

It felt like an eternity. Eventually, the banging moved farther down the hallway, and his screams faded into the distance.

After what felt like 30 minutes (but was probably closer to 10), the dean came back on the loudspeaker. He explained that a mentally unstable man had entered the school, assaulted the woman at the front desk, and ran inside. The staff couldn't confirm if he was armed. With no cameras or proper security back then, the school was vulnerable to incidents like this.

Even after a full sweep of the building, the man wasn't found. Teachers were instructed to lock their doors but resume teaching. The most disturbing part came later that night: a janitor working the late shift found the man **sleeping inside a storage closet** at the back of the school.

According to rumors, sticking out of his pocket was a **.44 Magnum**. By the time police arrived, the man had escaped — and as far as we know, he was never caught. I like to believe he eventually received the help he needed.

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# Another Scary Day: A Different Lockdown Experience

My middle school had two lunch periods — one for 6th graders and some 7th graders, and another for the rest of the 7th and 8th graders.

The lockdown happened in early October. It was overcast and rainy during the first lunch period when I heard four loud booms. At first, I thought it was thunder, but the lunchroom exploded into screaming chaos.

Campus security rushed in, ordering everyone into the multi-purpose room. Kids who were buying lunch had to throw it out and run inside.

The multi-purpose room was huge, with a back wall made of glass. Security quickly pulled the curtains and stationed adults at every exit.

My friend Derek asked what was happening. When he came back, he told us:

> "You know the houses across the street? A mentally unstable man who lived there barricaded himself inside his home, threatening to **kill the cops and himself** if he was evicted. He had been seen walking around the school, watching kids."

Even worse, he was a registered sex offender.

We were stuck inside for nearly two periods. Later, we found out from my friend Brandy — who lived nearby — that this man once wrote **"Don't come here or I'll kill you"** on his window in his own blood the previous Halloween. At the time, everyone assumed it was a Halloween decoration. Now, we knew it was something far more disturbing.

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# Working at My Old High School: A Terrifying Experience

At 22, fresh out of college, I got a job at my old high school as a computer intern, working in the basement. Although the basement was messy, our three-person office was amazing — complete with big desks, mini-fridges, a flat-screen TV, and even air conditioning.

I landed the job thanks to my former computer teachers, who treated me more like a friend than a former student.

Everything was going well until a few weeks ago.

One day, my coworkers, Dave and Gary, were upstairs. I was alone in the office eating lunch when I received a call from the front office: **"The school is on lockdown. Someone possibly armed has entered the building."**

The basement office didn't even have a real door — just a big open entrance — and the basement door itself had no working lock. I turned off the lights, silenced my phone, and waited in silence, nervously texting Dave and Gary, who didn’t respond.

About 20 minutes later, the noisy basement door opened, and footsteps echoed down the hallway.

Someone ran down the stairs and headed straight toward the office. Frozen in fear, I heard a "ding" from my phone — a text notification. My heart nearly stopped.

The footsteps grew closer. I dove out from under the desk, shouting for mercy. A man in a red plaid button-up shirt and a red-black cap grabbed my arm and whispered:

> "It's okay. I'm just hiding down here too. What's going on?"

He claimed he had come to pick up his son and was told by a teacher to hide.

Something felt off. Then, I checked my phone.

The text was from Dave:

> "**Dude, this is crazy. Some guy with a gun shot Mr. Buckley! He's wearing a red shirt and hat. Whatever you do, don't come upstairs.**"

I froze. The man saw my suspicious look. I panicked and sprinted toward the stairs. A gunshot rang out behind me, ricocheting off something metal.

Luckily, the bullet missed. I made it upstairs safely, where police officers were stationed at every exit. They caught the man the moment he tried to leave through the basement door.

Thankfully, Mr. Buckley survived. It turned out the gunman and Mr. Buckley had some unknown personal beef — but nothing that could ever justify such violence.

To this day, the sound of that gunshot still echoes in my mind.

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## Final Thoughts

These experiences showed me just how unpredictable and dangerous the world can be — even in places you expect to feel safest, like school. I’ll always be grateful to the teachers, staff, and police who acted fast and kept so many lives safe.