On Thursday morning, an unusual school day started in Groruddalen. Both the police, crisis team and nurses were ready at Linderud school. The day before, the school went into full alert after a report of shooting right next to the school yard. Teachers and students had to stay inside the school building. Parents who were to pick up their children were asked to wait in their cars. Outside, the police hunted for the perpetrators. – Our goal today has been to create as normal a school day as possible. It is important for the children, says Bitten Koch, principal at the school. FIRST REPORT: The police received a report at 15.43 on Wednesday that shots had been fired at a person at Linderud school in Groruddalen. ARMED ACTION: Large forces are moving to Linderud. Several of the police officers are armed. FULL PREPARATION: All students and teachers at Linderud School must stay inside the school building during the action. Parents are not allowed to enter the area.HELICOPTERS: The police helicopter circles the sky and assists in the hunt for the perpetrators. They search for a long time for a person who is supposed to be injured. ARRESTS: Three people are said to have left the scene in a car. First the driver is arrested, then one of the passengers. There must have been talk of an internal gang settlement and it was a coincidence that the shooting took place right next to the school. EMPTY CASES: Right by the school, the police find empty casings. It turns out that the victim was not injured. SEND THE CHILDREN HOME: At 5 p.m. the police say they have the situation under control and parents can come and collect their children. ARREST: A third person was arrested in the case on Wednesday evening. All three arrested are men in their 20s and known to the police. No one was injured, but children up to the age of 9-10 are said to have witnessed the shooting, according to the police. Most people still feel yesterday’s drama, she says. Accompanying the children to school Many parents chose to accompany the youngest to school on Thursday morning. – We have met some parents today who say they were scared. They saw the police helicopter over the school yesterday and followed the news, says the principal. EFFORT: The school’s principal, Bitten Kock, says they have had a large team in place to deal with the aftermath of the shooting. Photo: Oslo municipality/osloskolen Children and staff have also felt uneasy and have had a need to talk about the incident. And many have helped the school with just that. The employees received help from the occupational health service from early in the morning. Then came the educational-psychological service (PPT) to provide support for both pupils and teachers. – They gave advice and helped to talk to the children about what they had experienced, especially those who witnessed the shooting, she says. Hallgeir Braastad / news This is what the crisis team does – The crisis team has been established to support principals and staff in acute situations. This is what Marianne Stenberg, one of the leaders of the crisis team for Oslo municipality, says. – We are always two who travel together and provide support in the most acute phase of a crisis. Stenberg says they are the only one of their kind in the country and are prepared for all possible crises – including shootings. What do they do in situations like at Linderud school – All situations are unique. When we arrive, we listen to the principal and try to find out how we can best help. – We help them to talk well with the children and young people in the acute situation and for a long time afterwards, so that the relationship between teachers and pupils is strengthened and preserved. – Because an acute situation triggers something in us, but it is important that this is processed in the long term. Correct language – We are also trained in using language suitable for young children. We have different ways of meeting children and young people, and methods to find out who needs more follow-up. – It is always about creating security in the situation, calmness and an overview. – And then it is important to use language that suits different ages. And meet the children’s reactions in the best possible way. The crisis team rarely works alone – People are often restless and afraid. We can be someone to talk to, a hand to hold. – But we don’t take over the leadership. We assist the principal and the staff. – Several people work together. It could be the health service, school health service, emergency room or other emergency services. In addition, health nurses, police, the primary school director, somersault coordinator and more were in place, says the headmaster. – We have also looked at what we have done right and what we could have done better. We will continue to work on that, she says. The parents of the children have been scared, according to the headmaster. And some believe they did not receive good enough information. SMALL: Linderud School is a primary and secondary school with approximately 480 pupils and over 100 staff. Photo: Heiko Junge / NTB – Not prepared for a disaster One of them is deputy head of FAU at the school, Darija Fabijanovic. – It was very frightening, she says to news. When the first report came about shooting at Linderud school, it was unclear whether shots were fired inside the school, who was involved and whether the children were in danger. Early on, a message ticked in for rivers and parents. According to parent Darija Fabijanovic, there was too little information in this. Among other things, no one was told what had happened and why the school was closed. In addition, several students were allowed to go home before the situation was clarified, says Fabijanovic. – They have not been prepared for a disaster. It could perhaps be a topic at a parents’ meeting. Now the FAU deputy head is worried about how the school will handle potentially similar incidents in the future. The school, on the other hand, does not recognize itself in the criticism. Read the principal’s full response at the bottom of the case. WENT HOME: At 5 p.m., on Wednesday, the police announced that the school pupils could be safely picked up and go home. Photo: Heiko Junge / NTB Followed the police’s orders The headmaster at the school, Bitten Koch, says that the school has received very positive messages from the Norwegian Education Agency and the police regarding the handling. – In such incidents, the police also take over responsibility, which means that we act according to orders from the police. And according to the headmaster, no pupils were allowed to go home until the situation was clarified. The school first sent out a message, and then a comprehensive message that was made in collaboration with PPT and the communications department at UDE, she says. The headmaster believes that no schools in Norway are prepared for such incidents. – As shootings at primary schools are very rare in Norway, we do not have experience with this, but it is a situation that most schools must work on, says Koch. Read the full response from the principal at Linderud school FAU deputy head Darija Fabijanovic says that it seems as if the school was poorly prepared, and calls for more knowledge of various emergency plans that have been adopted at the school? The school has received very positive messages from UDE and the police regarding the handling. AKS employees who were at work did an excellent job of looking after students in years 1-4. and quickly got them to safety. Schools relate to the emergency response group in UDE, which we immediately contacted for assistance. In such incidents, the police also take over responsibility, which means that we act according to orders from the police/emergency squad. Quote: “What if the next time it happens inside the school? Are they sufficiently prepared for it?” As shootings at primary schools in Norway are very rare, we do not have experience with this, but it is a situation that most schools are guaranteed to have to work on. In addition, Fabijanovic believes there was insufficient information in the first message that was sent out to students and parents. Parents were not told what had happened, and several students were allowed to go home before the situation was clarified? The first message was aimed at parents who were supposed to pick up pupils at AKS and that we had had an incident. We had no other information than the little we got from the police, who kept students and staff inside and prevented parents from walking across the school grounds. This only applied to AKS students, as all other students finished at 14:00. We then sent out a message regarding collection, and then a comprehensive message that was created in collaboration with PPT and the communications department in UDE. No students were allowed to go home until the situation was clarified, there is no doubt about this. Fabijanovic also believes that school should have started later today, so that teachers could have had a conversation before the students arrived? We think it is best to start school as usual, so that teachers could talk to the students when they arrived for the 1st lesson. At the secondary level, the police went round to inform and pupils were offered an interview with health nurses, social workers, teachers and PPT. Daria’s children are both in secondary school. Employees were gathered from 07:45 to prepare for the day. In this preparation, PPT, the BH service, the police, health nurses, SALTO coordinator and primary school director took part Published 19.09.2024, at 19.35 Updated 19.09.2024, at 20.48
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Police and crisis team after shooting right at a primary school in Oslo – Greater Oslo
