MANSFIELD — Mansfield Spanish Immersion may be soon be the safest building in the Mansfield City Schools District.
Robert Booth, the district’s facilities manager, told the Mansfield City School Board on Tuesday night he would like to add Rapid Barricade switches to doors inside the facility.
Booth brought a one-minute video showing how the product could keep unwanted people in a school locked out of rooms by rotating the swinging lock and keeping the door shut. The bolt unlocks when the door is opened from the inside.
Booth then demonstrated the lock’s ability twice for the board.
Booth said because the district already had the correct door handles on door in most schools, the cost would be lower than he had expected. He said he would have a cost estimate in March or April, depending on the Fire Marshal’s approval of the device.
“The State Fire Marshal has already approved it, so I’m sure the one here will too,” Booth told the board.
At the Mansfield Spanish Immersion building, he said there would be 26 Rapid Barricade units purchased for about $8,000. At one point, the district was considering a $500,000 security system for the entire district.
The Rapid Barricade product is used by Mount Vernon Local Schools and Mount Vernon Nazarene, Booth said.
“If we can get these installed and the city approves, we can get these installed in every building in the district,” he said.
https://youtube.com/watch?v=iurk3VdJOws
Administrators and emergency responders will each get a tool to unlock the doors from the outside, Booth added.
Booth also showed the board a plastic-like wrap that would coat exterior and interior windows in the building.
“It’s actually bullet-proof,” Booth said, while showing the wrap to the board. “Police have shot rounds into it to test it. Mount Vernon spent about $1,800 on a roll of this and still had plenty left.”
