Lockdown at Speegleville Elementary prompted by individuals shooting targets nearby: police

WOODWAY, Texas (KWTX) - Central Texas police officers secured Speegleville Elementary after receiving reports of shots fired prompted by individuals who were shooting at targets in the area.

Shortly after 2 p.m. on March 30, Speegleville Elementary implemented a lockdown after learning of the “police activity occurring in the area near our school.” The campus placed on ”secure action,” meaning all doors were locked and no one could leave or enter the building.

Deputies with the McLennan County Sheriff’s Office searched the woods during the lockdown and discovered the individuals target practicing in the area.

The lockdown has since been lifted.

Hewitt Police Chief Jim Devlin said it all started when a staff member heard gunshots near the school and alerted a school officer. The officer verified that the sound was gunshots but he could not tell where they were coming from, Devlin said.

School officials put the school into lockdown while officers from several agencies, including the Woodway, Waco and Hewitt police departments, responded. Officers entered the school and determined there was no threat inside the building, Devlin said.  As the investigation progressed, residents who lived near the school also reported they heard gunshots near the school, Devlin said.

Sheriff’s deputies responding to the call determined the shots came from an area behind the school, Devlin said. School officials lifted the lockdown status and went back to normal operations with regular dismissal times, the chief said.

The school is located at 101 Maywood Drive.

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