A critical incident can be any sudden and unexpected incident or sequence of events which causes trauma within a school community and that overwhelms the normal coping mechanisms of that school.  Examples of such events include deaths or near-deaths and acts of physical and psychological violence. 

The district has a comprehensive critical incidents response plan to support students and staff. Experience has shown that schools that have a plan in place will handle the situation better. They tend to provide the best support to students, staff and families and return to normality sooner while continuing to be alert to the vulnerability of all concerned. The primary goal of a critical incident response plan is to help all those affected, and the system, to return to pre-incident functioning, or optimally to achieve even greater integration and functioning.