School age children have it tough enough, after two years of dealing with COVID learning, both in class and remote. Now two bomb threats called in by an anonymous person at two Yonkers public schools has resulted in evacuations and a loss of class time for chidren and teachers. While Yonkers police did not find a bomb at either location, it distracted the staff and students in the Yonkers Public Schools enough to cause outrage from YPS Superintendent Dr. Edwin Quezada, Mayor Mike Spano, and Police Commissioner John Mueller, as the work to find the culprit has begun.
On Sept. 30, an early morning anonymous bomb threat called into Yonkers Montessori Academy prompted an evacuation of the building and redirecting the school buses out of an abundance of caution for the safety of students and staff. First responders were dispatched to the school, proceeded with their search, and by 9:30 a.m. gave the all clear for everyone to return to the school.
The Sept 30 call, and the Sept. 29 call to Yonkers Middle High School, which add to the recent number of irresponsible anonymous threatening calls to public schools throughout the county, provoked outrage from the City and Board of Education leaders and Yonkers parents. “This reckless behavior is unacceptable,” stated Superintendent of Schools Dr. Edwin M. Quezada. “These disruptive incidents are unsettling to our children, who have just returned to their normal school day routines,” added Dr. Quezada, “Throughout this unfortunate experience today at Yonkers Montessori Academy, all of our students and staff were safe. Our school and District administrators diligently followed District Emergency Management protocols during this situation and immediately notified Yonkers Police and Fire Departments. Our educators and school staff do an outstanding job to keep our children safe.”
“The safety of our students is paramount and we will not allow threats like the one we saw today jeopardize that,” stated Mayor Mike Spano. “The coordinated multi agency effort speaks to the professionalism and swift action of our first responders and Yonkers Public Schools staff. We continue to review all safety and emergency protocols as to ensure our children are never put in harm’s way.”
Board of Education President Rev. Steve Lopez, noted, “These occurrences bring all of the City’s resources to our schools to ensure everyone’s safety, and their response is always immediate. The collaborative efforts of District and school administrators, teachers and staff is commendable, they remain focused on keeping our students safe and at ease.”
Police Commissioner John J. Mueller stated, “There is nothing more important than the safety of our children and we want parents and community members to know these recent bomb threats are unverified, uncorroborated, and that there is no credible information to believe that our kids were in any real danger. We are working with our local, state, and federal partners, and have committed every resource, to identify, apprehend, and charge the person responsible for making these calls; they will be found and held accountable for scaring families with young children and wasting First Responder resources that should be available to help others.”
Yonkers Council of PTAs Board added, “Our schools are supposed to be a safe haven for our children. We send our children off to what we believe to be secure learning environments to expand their minds and interact with friends and trusted adults. The events of this week have threatened and startled our community and threatened our children’s safe place. YCPTA shares everyone’s hope that these bomb threats cease, and the person(s) responsible are found and held accountable. We are grateful for the swift efforts of our law enforcement as well as our school district for keeping our children calm and secure.”
