School safety concerns resurface amid shootings

ORLANDO, Fla. (FOX 35 ORLANDO) - Central Florida parents prepare to send their kids back to school next week as images of more mass shootings cross their TVs, and the reality sets back in of the security concerns at schools across the country.

Attorney Michael Haggard who represents several families and survivors of the Parkland school shooting said Monday that, even though a lot has been done since that tragedy, the risk is still there.

"Your child's at risk, and I hate to say that," said Haggard, "I'm a parent of two kids in high school but the fact remains when they go to school, it's probably the most dangerous part of their day, and that's sick to say."

Haggard encouraged parents to do their own homework on their kids schools before the new year starts.

"Have an understanding of: what's access to that school? Can you just go on campus at 1:30 in the afternoon?" he said. "What's the plan that the school has."

Meanwhile, Orlando Police Chief Orlando Rolon said Monday people are rightfully concerned about safety everywhere right now. He encouraged residents of Orlando not to live in fear though, saying that police and public safety, including private security companies, are upping their game to stay ahead of problems. 

"We cannot allow for some individual's actions to basically dictate the way we live," he said.

However, he did caution that people do need to prepare and plan in case the worst would happen in school, at the store, or in any public place. He said to identify exits when you enter a room, plan an escape, and be ready to act and not just freeze up. 

He also said that citizens speaking up and saying something when they see something is key to identifying and preventing problems.

"Those sets of eyes and ears out there is what's going to make the difference between us addressing something immediately," he said.