DELRAY BEACH, FL — The noises coming from Atlantic Community High School over the next two weeks are part of a drill, not an emergency.
Delray Beach Police and Delray Beach Fire Rescue began active shooter training at the school Tuesday and will continue running drills there through July 30, according to a community advisory from the police department. The training will take place between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. each day at 2455 W. Atlantic Ave.
The advisory said the exercise is intended to prepare officers, firefighters, paramedics and community members for a large-scale emergency response. Police warned that the scenarios will be realistic and may include loud noises and screaming.
"There's no real danger to the public," the department said in the advisory.
The high school sits along West Atlantic Avenue, a main east-west corridor through Delray Beach, and is one of the largest campuses in the area. Public safety agencies often use school buildings for active shooter drills during summer months when classes are not in session because the layouts allow first responders to practice room-by-room clearing, communications and coordinated fire and medical response in a real school environment.
Delray Beach Police asked residents and drivers to avoid the training area during the drill hours to reduce disruption and to keep the exercise on schedule.
The advisory did not list specific road closures, staging locations, participating outside agencies or a list of days when scenarios will be most intense. It also did not indicate whether the training will pause on any dates within the two-week window.
Residents who hear noise from the campus during training hours are being asked to remember that the activity is scheduled and controlled. Anyone with a genuine emergency should still call 911.
This story is part of our ongoing Delray Beach reporting.
