PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — A student is in police custody after stabbing and injuring two school employees Tuesday, just after noon, at Castor Gardens Middle School on Cottman Avenue in Northeast Philadelphia.
"It did happen in a classroom. The student was found close by, and the student has been taken to police headquarters to be interviewed," said Monique Braxton, spokeswoman for the school district.
Braxton says it is not known what set the student off.
"There was no provocation, no warning. The student pulled out a knife and injured the two employees," she said.
The injuries were described as minor. Philadelphia police say a 63-year-old woman was stabbed on her left side. She was taken to a hospital for treatment. A 31-year-old woman was stabbed in the right arm. She refused treatment.
Castor Gardens — formerly Woodrow Wilson Middle School — does have metal detectors, and Braxton says it's unclear how the knife got into the school.
"We are not sure how that occurred, but the Office of School Safety is investigating that now."
The student was taken into custody, and police say they recovered a weapon. The school day continued after the incident, though some parents arrived to take their children home. Braxton says counselors were made available for students who needed to talk.
