Parents Outside School: 'My Daughter is Scared'

Anxious parents congregated outside Brinellskolan in Fagersta, Sweden, as a lockdown situation unfolded, leaving their children inside and frightened.

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My daughter called me and said they were locked in and not allowed to go out.

Agnes, a mother who rushed from work upon hearing from her daughter, described the situation: "My daughter called me and said they were locked in and not allowed to go out." She found some comfort being closer to the school, learning that the children were gathered in the library. "She is scared, feels a little sick and so on," Agnes said of her daughter.

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She is scared, feels a little sick and so on.

Azad Ali also waited outside for his daughter, communicating with her via messages as phone calls were not possible. "She told me: 'Dad, many people are going out, but we are waiting for the police to come back and say okay.' But she is scared," he recounted.

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She told me: 'Dad, many people are going out, but we are waiting for the police to come back and say okay.' But she is scared.

By early evening, the municipality announced that the police operation was still active, but students who had been sheltered in various schools and preschools across the municipality were permitted to leave. Roger Ågren, the regional rescue leader, stated that emergency services, working with police, had attended to injured individuals on-site. "It's always about the police having to secure things so we can go in and act. Then we act quite offensively, get people out of this acute phase, and then hand over to healthcare," Ågren explained. He confirmed that rescue services had concluded their operations, with debriefings underway and healthcare personnel beginning to withdraw. Crisis support was to be provided at the fire station.

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It's always about the police having to secure things so we can go in and act. Then we act quite offensively, get people out of this acute phase, and then hand over to healthcare.