Editor’s Note: Story has been updated.
A Proviso West High School student was stabbed and another was on the run after a morning altercation at school.
The wounded student was sent to an area hospital for non-life-threatening injuries and was released from the hospital the same afternoon.
According to Andrew Mack, spokesperson for the Village of Hillside, Hillside police and fire officials responded to an incident at the high school on Harrison Street at about 10:10 a.m.
When they arrived, a student was in the nurse’s office with a stab wound to the arm.
The perpetrator, also believed to be a student at the high school, fled the scene, said Mack. Police were able to locate the perpetrator and they have since been brought into custody.
An additional student who witnessed the incident was questioned by police.
The incident is believed to have been due to an ongoing dispute between the students.
Both Proviso West and neighboring Hillside Elementary on Harrison Street were placed on lockdown, which has since been reduced to a soft lockdown, limiting the people who can go in and out of the school but still allowing for students to move around the building and attend class.
According to Mack, the schools will be kept on the soft lockdown until the end of the school day.
West principal Elizabeth Martinez released a statement to the community after the incident.
“Swift action was taken by the school administration, local law enforcement and emergency medical teams, who arrived promptly at the scene,” Martinez said.
Martinez also assured the Proviso West community that the school is “safe and secure.”
“Our top priority is the safety and well-being of our students and staff,” Martinez said.
According to Mack, there is no current threat to the community or any other school. The investigation is ongoing.
