Column: A parent’s terrifying morning as chaos unfolded during Saugus High School shooting

My son was at Saugus High School when the shots rang out Thursday morning. He is a freshman, plays saxophone in the band, is always at school early for practice. He was in the band room doing biology homework when he heard the gunfire.

Gunshots? He said he heard four. One of the girls who was shot was pulled into the choir room, next to the band room where my son was with other band members. My son said she was shot in the side and in the shoulder. He didn’t see any of it. But he heard it happen.

Text messages started coming in to my cell phone around 7:45 a.m. One was from the Hart High School District about staying away from Saugus High School and police activity that had the campus closed. I wasn’t sure if my son was at school. He usually is there early in the morning, but I wasn’t sure. I texted him to ask what is going on.

He responded: Shooter at school.

Shooter? That was the whole message. I had no idea if he was safe, if it was safe to text him. What if he was hiding? What if he was in danger? What if texting him would put him at risk of being shot? Why should I hesitate staying in contact with my son?

Are you safe? I decided to keep it simple and short.

He said “Yes.” He was with the band.

I asked him if his mom knew what was going on. He said, “Yes.” That was the last text he sent.

More messages from the school district. All schools in the district were on lockdown. A reunification center was being set up at Central Park. Students were going to be transported to the park when law enforcement said it was safe.

The kids — my kid — were trapped at school. There was no way to make sure he was safe.

There was no way of knowing if the shooter was still on campus, in the neighborhood, if he was the only one with a gun. I didn’t know what to do. Go to the park and wait. Stay away until the police said it was safe to pick up our kids. I never thought I would have to go through this. Who knows how to deal with this?

I heard the kids were being sent to a church near the school. They were being transported to the park by buses. I drove to the church. I walked to where the kids were being led by armed police from the church to the buses. I saw my son. My first thought was to grab him and hug him. Instead, I made sure he saw me and I told him I would meet him at the park. It was comforting to see him safe, but it was disturbing to see him and his classmates in this scenario. They looked like hostages being transported to safety. Some kids were crying. Some were texting, probably friends and family. They looked worried, scared, confused.

I started walking from the church to the park with other parents who wanted to reunite with their kids, The park was packed my police, firefighters, medical personnel, Sheriff’s helicopters circled the neighborhood. I still had no idea if the shooter was still on the loose, how many kids were shot, how many had already died. I was focused on seeing my son again. I made sure of the bus number my son was on as it passed down the street from the church to the park.

Hundreds of parents waited at the park for their kids. I was one of them. It took a while for my son to get off the bus and for me to see him again. He found his mom first. She hugged him and didn’t let go. I hugged him, not knowing what to say. “I’m sorry this happened.” “How are you feeling?” “Are you OK?” Who could be OK after something like this? I’m not OK with any of this. I can’t imagine how my son is processing all of this.

We walked out of the park. He and his mom live in the neighborhood across the street from the park. A friend met us to give them a ride home. She updated us on the news. One girl was killed. The shooter shot himself. Five kids were in the hospital with gunshot wounds. By the time our friend drove me to my car, another kid died in the hospital.

Thank goodness my kid was safe. But what a selfish thought. Kids were dead. My son’s safety is forever in question. And still one question looms over all others. How did the shooter get a gun? That is the big question I want answered. Some people shouldn’t have guns. This kid was one of them. How does this happen?

Capt. Robert Lewis of the Santa Clarita Sheriff’s Department said during a news conference on Thursday that these incidents need to end, that we need to say no more to senseless shootings. It has been time to say no more for a long time. It’s time to find some answers. The first is to keep guns out of the hands of people who shouldn’t have them.

Can we start there and make school safe again?