Design for new Attleboro High School includes state-of-the-art gunshot detection system

ATTLEBORO, Mass. — Attleboro Mayor Paul Heroux announced Wednesday a new high-tech gunshot detection system has been added in city schools that will summon help immediately. Officials said they are also looking into systems to keep guns out of schools.

This announcement comes a day after a deadly mass shooting at a Texas Elementary School that leaves the nation devastated and wanting change.

The new $259 million facility will have bullet-proof, fortified doors and a state-of-the-art security system that will immediately notify police when triggered by a gunshot.

The detection system is currently in eight of the city’s nine schools and Heroux said the new high school will also be equipped with it to complement other safety design measures, such as shatterproof glass at the school entrance.

“If we can reduce response times we can save lives,” Heroux said at a news conference at the high school with Police Chief Kyle Heagney.

The high-tech acoustics of the detection system is sophisticated enough to tell the difference between a gunshot and a firecracker or a door slamming shut.

“It’s proven technology that we are bringing to our school system to keep our kids safe,” Heagney said. Rather than having to rely on someone calling 911 and a dispatcher to relay the emergency, the system will immediately alert every police officer and dispatcher and a list of school officials to the gunshot and tell them where it originated, officials said.

“This is the same technology that, basically, is at the White House and the Pentagon,” Heroux said.

Attleboro’s School District is taking measures to be proactive including hosting active shooter training and prioritizing students’ mental health.

This new school will be opening in time for the start of the 2022 school year.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

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