Otumoetai College and Bellevue School students, parents, neighbours react to distressing school lockdowns

Police at Bellevue School after the school lockdown. Photo / Andrew Warner

"We thought we'd die" - student

An Otumoetai College student said students at the school "thought we'd die for a while ... [I'm] still a little traumatised.

"We all thought it was a drill at first because our principal told us we are having practice emergency situations this week and next week."

The students started "freaking out" before they found out the shots had been near Bellevue School.

Milly Fives, a Bellevue School pupil, was in class when the school went into lockdown.

"The teacher said to hide behind the board and hide under the tables. We thought it was fake but it wasn't."

Milly said she was scared but kept herself busy by drawing on a whiteboard.

"Straight away I knew it was a shotgun" - parent

Jason Harnett, who lived next door to Bellevue School, has two boys aged 10 and 6 who attend the school.

"I went to school this morning and I heard one shot. It sounded like a gunshot but I thought someone must have banged into a car or something."

Parent and neighbour Jason Harnett said he initially thought the gunshot was a car banging into something. Photo / Andrew Warner

He said about 10 minutes later he heard a second gunshot and what he believed to be bullet shells hitting the roof of his house.

"To me straight away I knew it was a shotgun. I was a bit worried so I went down to the school and straight away I was told the school was on lockdown."

Mary Fives, Milly Fives' mother, said she got a text from a friend asking if she had received a call from Bellevue School about the lockdown.

She was stuck at work and started to worry about her child at the school.

Fives said when she picked up her daughter from school about lunchtime she had noticed a change in the pupils' behaviour during the break.

"They are all really quiet ... it is different."

A parent, who wanted to be called Dorne, said police had pulled up to Bellevue School during the lockdown and entered the grounds armed with "big guns".

She had been texting people who were inside the school during the lockdown and found a range of emotions from inside, from "'aw s***' to 'we're just chilling'."

"It is freaky" - neighbour

Paige Abernethy, who lives opposite Bellevue School, said she found out about the lockdown on Facebook and went outside to have a look.

Neighbour Paige Abernethy said the incident was "freaky". Photo / Zoe Hunter

She said there was only one police car before others turned up about half an hour later.

"It is freaky. You don't expect this kind of thing to happen. It was way too close to home especially since my kids play outside."

A man who lived directly next to Bellevue School said he heard the gunshots and warned the caretaker.

"I asked, 'Did you hear that?' And he said he did," said the man, who only wished to be named Simon, said.

"It was definitely a shotgun blast. It was a loud boom, real loud."

Simon said he then heard the principal on the loudspeaker warning everyone to get inside.

"Within seconds the school was in action. Hats off to the staff there."

He said he had lived next to the school for about five years and said "nothing ever happens like this".

"Usually you hear kids laughing ... this doesn't happen here. It is a really quiet neighbourhood."