A bomb threat at the Holmwood Technical High School in Manchester today impacted normal operations including the sitting of Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC) exams.

Holmwood Technical High is one of 3 educational institutions affected by threats today. 

Earlier reports are that at least 2 schools in the Corporate Area received threats as well.

These are Kingston College and Campion College.

These schools also suffered disruptions to the administration of  CXC exams.

At Holmwood, school administrators said the threat was noticed at about midday, when the morning exam session ended.

The authorities were contacted and police and fire fighters responded, and carried out checks.

Head of the Manchester Police Division, Superintendent Carey Duncan said all safety protocols were activated.

This includes evacuating staff and students to the open play field. 

School administrators told IRIE FM News that they have been given the all clear and its expected that normal classes will resume tomorrow.

As for the impact on exams, this was minimal, as only the afternoon session was affected, and the students sitting those exams were diverted to other exams centres.

Meantime, in the Corporate area, classes and external examinations at Kingston College and Campion College were disrupted today due to bomb threats.

This morning, the schools’ administrators activated safety protocols upon receipt of the threats.

Classes were cancelled and all persons at the campus were evacuated to a safe zone.

The police and fire brigade were alerted and checks conducted.

The police later gave the all clear and also indicated that the threats were hoaxes.

Kingston College said students sitting CXC exams were diverted to other schools, where they did the tests.

While Campion College noted that both CXC and the Overseas Examinations Commission, (OEC) were advised of the situation. 

Campion said students doing the Caribbean Studies paper for CXC’s Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC), were quarantined after being stopped during the exam because of the bomb threat this morning.

The students were later able to return to the exam room and complete the test, in the afternoon. 

The school sought to assure that CXC has systems in place to treat with disruptions to exams, wherein consideration is given due to the impact on students doing exams at the time of the disruption.