Laurels & lances: Negotiated security and serious pranks

Tribune-Review | Friday, April 14, 2023 5:01 a.m.

Courtesy of WPXI

Police were called to Pitt for what turned out to be false reports of an active shooter at Hillman Library on Monday night.

Laurel: To a summer tradition. Kennywood will be open. No, don’t check your zipper. Just rest assured that the West Mifflin amusement park will operate as usual this summer.

There were questions about that in March when Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr. said he would go to court to prevent the park from opening unless his security concerns were met.

“You will do these. It’s not negotiable,” he said at a news conference at the time.

The park was the scene of a shooting in September. Three people were injured. Zappala has charged no one in the case.

But Monday brought news of a successful agreement.

“The intent of the meeting and future steps is to demonstrate the shared commitment the park, law enforcement and the district attorney have to overall public safety so guests can enjoy a best-of-class entertainment experience at Kennywood,” according to a joint statement.

That assurance came just before Thursday’s announcement of a new Primanti Bros. location inside the park. Convenient timing.

Lance: To a sad repetition. Enough with the faked catastrophes, people.

As if it wasn’t bad enough that people have to train to handle active shooter situations at schools and hospitals and houses of worship, now we have to deal with the nerve-shredding panic of false events.

In the aftermath of the March 27 shooting in Nashville, “swatting” calls came in the next day with reports of active shooters in schools across the state, including Central Catholic and Oakland Catholic in Pittsburgh and Laurel Highlands High School in Fayette County. Then Mt. Pleasant Junior-Senior High School was hit April 5.

On Monday, it was the University of Pittsburgh’s turn as the target of an unreal attack.

These cannot be ignored. But instead, we can become inured — acclimating to the repetition. What is concerning — aside from the stress and the cost of these hoaxes — is the fear that we could reach a point that when real threats come, people may not respond as quickly or as seriously as they should.