A suspicious package prompted a strong police response that put a Crystal Lake high school on a security alert and shut down a road Tuesday afternoon.
The McHenry County Sheriff’s Office responded to a report at 1:05 p.m. Tuesday of a “suspicous package on the bike trail” near the intersection of Walkup and Hillside roads near Crystal Lake, according to a news release. Unable to identify the package, officers called in the Kane County Sheriff’s Office Bomb Unit to investigate.
“Upon investigation, the bomb unit determined the package was not dangerous, and the situation was safely resolved,” sheriff’s office officials said in the release.
The sheriff’s office cleared the scene and opened the road to traffic at 3:30 p.m., according to an alert.
Community High School District 155’s Prairie Ridge High School was within the investigation area, and officials put the school on a “secure” alert. The secure alert means students cannot leave the building, and no visitors are allowed on campus. Classes continued as normal during the security alert, District 155 Communications Director Shannon Podzimek said in an email.
“Crystal Lake Police and McHenry County Sheriff’s Office have temporarily blocked Walkup Road and are investigating a suspicious package along the roadway,” a message from District 155 sent to families and staff read. “At this time, all students and staff are safe inside the building.”
Dismissal at the regularly scheduled 2:50 p.m. continued, but only from the north of campus.
“Police officers will be on site to assist with traffic management during dismissal,” according to the message.
Some students had planned to walk out of the school at 2 p.m. Tuesday, protesting the actions of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. The walkout is similar to ones that were held across high schools in McHenry County and beyond last week.
A handful of parents holding protest signs stood at Walkup Road Tuesday afternoon where the sheriff’s office shut down the road and walking path by Indian Hill Trail. Parent Marisa Roach said her freshman daughter tried to leave the school for the protest, but was not allowed to leave the campus.
Resident Kevin Sarnwick, who lives off Walkup Road where it was closed off to traffic, described the scene as scores of “cars rerouted, gobs of squad cars, a fire truck, [and] news helicopters.”
Crystal Lake police said they were not involved and declined to comment.