By Kenneth Miller |Publisher
It was roughly 8:17 p.m. when hundreds of students began running onto the field and away from the bleachers at Los Angeles Southwest College on Aug. 21 during King-Drew Medical Magnet and San Pedro High School in their Los Angeles City Section season opening football showdown.
San Pedro, among the top ranked team in the LA City was leading the contest 15-6 late in the third quarter when the game was canceled, after chaos broke out forcing students, parents and school administrators into panic, frantically running from the northwest parking structure and onto the field beyond the playing surface seeking shelter on the outer fringes of track.
Some students sought safety in the press box, where I was located serving at the public address announcer for King-Drew.
CANCELED The King-Drew versus San Pedro high school football game was abruptly canceled during the third quarter on Aug. 21 at LA Southwest College. Speculation ran rampant of a possible shooting, but nothing has been confirmed as of this writing. (KENNETH MILLER/PHOTO)
When I ask one student what happen she said she thought she heard sound resembling gun shots, but one parent immediately shot that allegation down, adding that what she heard was a sound more of a loud bang or dropping of a cell phone on the bleachers.
As the Southwest College security urged everyone to evacuate the stadium, hundreds of people were escorted from the field through the underground concrete parking structure by uniforms Los Angeles County Sheriffs.
Once through the structure and safely into my vehicle, I noticed at least a dozen Los Angeles Unified School District Police and LA County Sheriff patrol vehicles with flashing lights and sirens blasting.
I ask one officer from LAUSD did anybody get hurt and his response was, “not that I know of.”
A few moments after, ambulance and fire trucks came roaring through the gates with emergency lights on.
That is a whole lot of law enforcement activity and emergency personnel for nothing to have happened.
