Toronto school cancels classes for rest of year after anonymous threat
A Toronto private school has cancelled classes for the remainder of the year after it received an anonymous email and phone threat earlier this week.
The incident at Branksome Hall happened shortly before 7:30 a.m. on Monday and briefly resulted in the school being placed under a lockdown. Police told CP24 at the time that the lockdown was implemented “out of abundance of caution.” The school reopened a short time later after police determined there was “no immediate threat” to students and staff.
Students, however, were sent home for the rest of the day.
On Monday evening, Branksome Hall sent a letter home to parents advising them that classes are being cancelled for the remainder of the school year. The last day of classes scheduled for the 2021-2022 school year at Branksome Hall was Tuesday, June 14.
In a statement provided to CP24, spokesperson Liisa Stephenson said they decided to end the school year early after “carefully weigh(ing) the risks … against the safety of our community.”
“We are grateful to our employees who stepped in to calm students, support each other and engage swiftly and efficiently with our lockdown protocols, as well as Toronto Police Services for their guidance and responsiveness. We also thank our students and parents for their patience, cooperation and for the messages of support and understanding shared,” she said.
“We have made arrangements for exams and are working with our parent and employee community to find creative ways to wrap up the end of the year and celebrate our students’ accomplishments.”
Branksome Hall held an on-campus graduation ceremony in May for its Grade 12 students. End-of-year ceremonies for students in Grades 6 to 11 will be held “mostly virtual” this week, the school said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Federal government to further limit number of international students
The federal government will be further limiting the number of international students permitted to enter Canada next year. It's the government's latest immigration-related measure to address Canadians' ongoing housing and affordability concerns.
Search for suspect in Kentucky highway shooting ends with discovery of body believed to be his
Authorities say they believe the body of a man suspected of shooting and wounding five people on a Kentucky interstate highway has been found.
Here's why you should get all your vaccines as soon as possible
With all these shots, some Canadians may have questions about the benefit of each vaccine, whether they should get every shot and how often to get them, and if it's safe to get them all at once or if they should space them out.
Bloc MPs will vote confidence in Liberal government next week: Blanchet
The Conservatives' first shot at toppling the Liberal government is likely doomed to fail, after Bloc Quebecois Leader Yves-François Blanchet told reporters his MPs will vote confidence in the government.
'I'm here for the Porsche': Video shows brazen car theft in Mississauga
Video of a brazen daylight auto theft which shows a suspect running over a victim in a stolen luxury SUV has been released by police west of Toronto.
Exploding electronic devices kill 20, wound 450 in second day of explosions in Lebanon
Lebanon's health ministry said Wednesday that at least 20 people were killed and 450 others wounded by exploding electronic devices in multiple regions of the country. The explosions came a day after an apparent Israeli attack targeting pagers used by Hezbollah killed at least 12 and wounded nearly 3,000.
'It starts off innocent': Manitoba man loses $185,000 to crypto-romance scam
A Manitoba man is warning others after he fell victim to an elaborate online scam over the summer.
Teen faces new charge in Sask. high school arson attack
A 14-year-old student who allegedly set her classmate on fire is facing a new charge.
Quebec woman charged with first-degree murder in death of five-year-old boy
A 29-year-old Quebec woman is facing a first-degree murder charge in the death of a five-year-old boy southwest of Montreal.