A toy gun triggered a very real threat at a Sioux Falls high school late Tuesday morning. Now, 3 students face suspension and possible criminal charges for carrying a plastic gun into school that caused another student to notify authorities. It led to a lockdown at Lincoln High School in Sioux Falls just after 11:00 Tuesday morning. Police surrounded the building and searched the school while students were locked in classrooms. It wasn't long before the all clear was given. No one was hurt and class returned to normal, but students say the potential danger was eye opening. Student Gabrielle Johnson says,"We were all just a little bit nervous that there was someone actually in our school who could actually pose a threat to all of us because we feel pretty safe every day until I guess something scary like this happens."

Leaders with the Sioux Falls School District are happy things ended the way they did today: safely. Students and staff practice lockdown drills. Tuesday, they saw how those drills paid off. When the lockdown went into place, a finely-tuned plan went into action at Lincoln High School. Steve Bruce got a text message from his daughter. He says, "I was like 6 minutes or less from the school and I got here in 6 minutes and they had already locked the school down." In the meantime, students and staff were getting updates on what was going on. Sioux Falls Instructional Support Services Director, Dr. Bill  Smith says, "The principal got on the intercom and reassured people on 2 or 3 different occasions, letting them know what was happening, asking them for their cooperation, keeping them up to date."

Parents also got two messages from the principal telling them what was happening at the school. The district says its pleased with how staff, students and law enforcement cooperated. Still, they know this incident might have been troubling for some, considering the timing. Dr. Smith says, "I'm certain that because this comes on the heels of the anniversary of Columbine, the first thought people had is that something bad is going to happen." But in this case, nothing bad did happen and everyone was safe. Administrators and parents agree that's what's most important. Steve Bruce says,"That makes me feel good the way that they responded, not only in locking the school down, but then communicating to the parents so I think they did a real good job."

Dr. Smith tells me school leaders will assess how things went today, to see what they can learn.