(Updated) - Slowly but surely students in central Orlando began making their way home from school this afternoon after a mandatory lockdown of two schools was lifted following the arrest of a fugitive gunmen suspected of opening fire at a 16-story building, killing one and injuring five others.
Orange County Public Schools spokeswoman Kathy Marsh said the police-ordered lockdowns of Edgewater High School and Princeton Elementary School ended at 2:05 p.m. Eastern time. Edgewater shuttered its doors shortly after police responded to reports of the shooting at a building located across Interstate 4 from the school district's administration building. The high school's normal end bell time is at 2:15 p.m. Many students there drive themselves to school, but Marsh added there remains a large number reliant on school buses.
Meanwhile, Princeton Elementary was locked down at about 1:15 p.m. Eastern Time. It's normal release time for students is 3 p.m.
But how long it will take for students at not only those two schools but many others remained in question. Interstate 4 was completely shut down, and local surface streets were also closed or badly gridlocked. Marsh said many school buses were stuck in the resulting traffic snarl. Before the lockdown was ended, Marsh said OCPS was advising parents not to attempt to come to their children's schools for pickup.
"We advise parents not to rush to the schools to pickup children," Marsh said. "This is quite a large dragnet, that is why a school within that location will get marching orders to lock down as well. We have other schools nearby."
It was not immediately known how many of the children at the two schools, or others, were affected, Marsh added. Phone messages left with OCPS transportation services had to yet to be returned. However, the district's total student population is 174,000, the 10th largest in the nation.
"That domino effect occurs if one school bus doesn’t make it to tis exact place on time," Marsh said. "The city iss in a bit of a gridlock."