Emergency Responders Praise Keeney School's Response to 'Suspicious White Powder' [VIDEO]

Students and staff at Keeney Street Elementary School received quite the scare Thursday afternoon, as the school was after a suspicious letter was received by the main office containing a white powdery substance and threatening language. 

But the emergency personnel who responded to the school soon after praised the staff and students for their handling of the situation, which they said quickly eliminated the possibility of any danger had the powder turned out to be harmful or dangerous. 

Fire Chief Robert Bycholski said the school received a letter about 2 p.m. that contained a "suspicious white powdery substance" and threatening language, but Bycholski praised the secretary who opened the letter for following protocol and ensuring that students inside the building were never in danger. 

"I want to give credit where credit is due," Bycholski said. "The secretary in office knew exactly what to do. She got the envelope, opened it, and noticed that there was a white powder in it and immediately placed that envelope she received into a plastic bag, sealed it, and then double-sealed it in another plastic envelope." 

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Bycholski said school officials then placed the school in "soft lock down" to isolate the office where the powder was discovered and shut down the school's HVAC system to prevent any chemicals that may have been released from spreading throughout the building. 

"This happened in an office within an office so it was very easy to isolate this area and it was very easier to keep everyone protected because the school just did the right thing," Bycholski said. "I think that's important to mention." 

Bycholski said that local police and fire personnel as well as state police and officials from the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection all responded to the scene Thursday but that they had not analyzed the powder yet and did not know what it was. 

"We don't know what the powder is," he told Patch. "We're treating it as a suspicious incident. The powder will be taken to a lab for an analyzes and we will get the results." 

Interim Superintendent Richard Kisiel told Patch shortly after the lockdown went into effect around 2:30 p.m. that the letter contained a message stating that "al-Qaeda is back."

General Manager Scott Shanley, who also responded to the scene Thursday, said he hoped the letter and powder turned out to be a hoax, but it was still necessary to follow protocol and take every precaution in a situation where lives could be in danger. 

"You can never be too careful about something like this," Shanley said. 

Still, by 3:30 p.m. the scene outside the school resembled most any other day, as parents arrived in droves to pick up their kids at the regular dismissal time and take them home. 

Micaela Diana, whose three children attend the school, said Thursday afternoon as she picked up her children that it was alarming to hear about the suspicious letter and lockdown, but that she trusted police and school staff to keep her kids safe. 

"It was distressing to get the phone call," Diana told Patch Thursday afternoon outside the school. "But I also know the police department and the school department in our town and I have the utmost faith in them."

School officials have announced that Keeney Street Elementary School will be closed Friday.