by Nick Delgado

Guam - While the nation mourns the innocent lives lost in a school massacre that occurred over the weekend in Connecticut, on Guam there were a few tense moments at Ordot-Chalan Pago Elementary School after a staffer there received a threatening phone call.

"There's a threat that's been made against a staff member here at the school," said Bruce Williams. That threat, according to Williams, the Department of Education safety administrator, was actually made late last week. "I was called this morning so I came here when I found out who the individual was that made the threat, so the threat level went up to lockdown," he explained.

Williams would not go into specifics, the severity or the nature of the threat but evidently it was concern enough to take all precautions to ensure the safety of students at Ordot-Chalan Pago Elementary. he said, "We've taken precautionary measures and put the school into a modified lockdown meaning the campus is secure the gates are locked, access is limited , um, everybody is safe, children are going to their classes they're going to lunch, okay, police are present and will present throughout the day until such time the threat has gone away."

Parents such as Carol Pryne, who has been watching the events unfold in Connecticut, naturally was concerned about the safety of her 5-year-old attending kindergarten here. "I don't know what's going on but I'm usually here every lunch hour and I volunteer in the cafeteria and in the playground to be also with my child and I tried to get to here because I don't know what's going on and this is just making me more panic," she said.

According to Williams, DOE had the situation under control the entire time. "You keep the students calm this is an elementary school we told them, that this is an exercise we want to keep the kids calm we've been telling the parents this is an exercise," he said.

Students were eventually released early at 11:30 this morning as a safety precaution, as for the perpetrator who made the alleged threat that remains under investigation. According to GPD Spokesperson Officer A.J. Balajadia, he confirms that an employee from Ordot-Chalan Pago Elementary School made a complaint to GPD last week and that the Criminal Investigation Division is investigating it. He could not say just yet whether the complaint was related to this morning's modified lockdown at the campus.

The Department of Education issued a press release announcing there will be not be classes for students of Ordot-Chalan Pago Elementary School tomorrow. According to the media release the closure is in response to an incident involving the relationship of a person working at the school and an unnamed individual. The incident is unique and isolated to the school. DOE is working with GPD to monitor the situation.

After the school massacre in Connecticut, DOE superintendent Jon Fernandez issued a media release to reassure parents and families of the island's public school students that campuses on Guam have comprehensive safety plans in place and are regularly reviewed and updated and drills and training are conducted periodically with staff and students. Another round of disaster preparedness training is being coordinated during the upcoming Christmas Break.