Police patrols increase at schools in wake of Uvalde shooting

In the wake of the mass shooting at an Uvalde elementary school that left 19 students and two teachers dead, authorities across Cameron County are beefing up patrols around schools.

Harlingen police announced Wednesday that it will have extra police patrolling the streets for the last week of school.

“This is for the safety of everyone attending school,” the police department posted on its Facebook page.

The department urges the community to be mindful and report any suspicious or unsafe activity.

Harlingen Consolidated Independent School District also stated that security would be stepped up on their campuses in response to Tuesday’s event.

“Our district remains vigilant in prioritizing student and staff safety. As we continue to practice all security protocols, we urge our community to continue to be mindful and to report any suspicious or unsafe activity,” HCISD stated on its Facebook page.

In addition, counseling services will be available to students in need of support.

Many parents stated they had seen police cars parked at their children’s school Wednesday morning.

Parent Lisa Martinez Saldivar wrote in a Facebook post: “As I drove up to drop off my child I saw the officer parked. Drove off in tears that it has come to this. God help and protect us all.”

In a telephone interview, Saldivar said she cannot imagine what the parents whose children were killed are going through.

Her 11-year-old daughter is a fifth grader at Treasure Hills Elementary School and just one year older than most of the children who were killed in Tuesday’s Uvalde shooting.

“As I drove up I had to hold it in (my tears) because I didn’t want my daughter to see and worry more.”

Like the students in Uvalde, the students at Treasure Hills attended a promotion ceremony. Her daughter will be in middle school next year.

“I remember the principal saying this is their happy place and unfortunately the students from Uvalde it was a sad place for them yesterday,” Saldivar said.

Saldivar said she blessed her child as she does every morning asking God to keep her safe. “I place her in God’s hands every day.”

“Look how close it happened to us. We are not immune to any of it. Evil and sadness keep happening, it can happen anywhere,” the mom said.

Harlingen’s last day of school is Friday.

The Point Isabel Independent School District announced on its Facebook page that its police department, the Port Isabel Police Department and other nearby law enforcement agencies would be providing extra patrols at its schools.

“As an additional safety measure and in response to this tragedy, PIISD PD and all of our local police departments will be providing extra patrols around Point Isabel ISD the entire week,” the district stated.

Adding, “Our district remains vigilant in providing safety for our students and staff. As we continue to practice all security measures, we urge Tarpon Nation to be mindful and report any suspicious or unsafe activities.”

The PIISD’s last day of school is also Friday.

The Brownsville Independent School District announced that it would no longer allow backpacks on its campuses. Messages were sent directly to parents.

BISD is one of the largest school districts in the Valley with 55 campuses and a student population of 38,500.

Investigator Martin Sandoval, spokesman for the Brownsville Police Department, said the department provides patrols around the schools and works in conjunction with BISD’s police department in keeping the schools safe.

“Extra steps have already been in place for years. We work very well with BISD, BISD is taking care of their campuses and of course if they need any help or any assistance, we are always there to provide it,” Sandoval said.

“It’s always a work in progress to stay ahead of anyone who wants to hurt our kids,” Superintendent Rene Gutierrez said. “It’s a work in progress, and we’re always saying what else can we do?”

Gutierrez said fortunately or unfortunately each incident of gun violence brings more awareness of steps that can be taken to mitigate the chance of something similar happening here.

He said the district spends $2 million annually equipping police and security officers and making sure the department is well prepared for any eventuality.

Police and Security Services Chief Oscar Garcia said BISD Police and Security Services operate 24/7.

“Thanks to our superintendent and board of trustees that have supported our initiatives over the years, I believe our department is one of the over-prepared departments in our area,” Garcia said.

“Every campus has an emergency operational plan, and it’s a living document,” Garcia said, adding that the department collaborates with other area law enforcement agencies to conduct regular multi-agency training drills.

BISD is state certified to conduct such drills within the school policing environment, he said.

Gutierrez said he sees the department as important to everyone’s well-being.

“We feel that it’s important to have a well-equipped, well-trained department to serve all our kids,” Gutierrez said. “Also, our campuses are as safe and secure as they can be. We have officers, we have patrol units, we have cameras and we also have limited access to our campuses.”

Garcia noted that anyone who wants to enter a school has to ring a doorbell to be allowed to come in.

“We cannot say we are 100% perfect, but we are working as hard as we can,” Gutierrez said.

In regard to private schools, Sandoval said they have uniformed officers to provide security to them.

“This is something that has been in play for years. It is not new, as we didn’t wait for a tragedy, we acted before. We are making sure every security measure is in place to prevent something like this from happening in Brownsville,” Sandoval said.

BISD’s last day of school is also on Friday.