It was a stressful start to the HSC at one Illawarra high school, which was forced into lockdown as the first English exam concluded.
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Kanahooka High School was placed into lockdown around 11.30am, after police received reports of a male brandishing a weapon out of a car on Joan Street on the western side of the school.
A staff member locked all the school gates at that time, with a loud speaker announcement around midday instructing students to stay inside their classrooms as the school was in lockdown.
Concerned parents rushed to the school after receiving text messages from their children, many of whom were undertaking the HSC exam which was scheduled to finish at 11.45am.
The school released a message on its Facebook page, advising parents and carers of the situation and assuring them that ''all students are safe".
"No student will be permitted to leave until the lockdown is lifted," the statement read.
"There has been no disruption to the HSC exams and all Year 12 students are remaining in the library."
Police arrived on scene and spoke to "a number of witnesses" before the lockdown ended around 1.30pm.
Lake Illawarra Police Inspector James Dark said investigations into the incident would be ongoing.
"Shortly after 11am police received reports of three males driving past the school, brandishing some sort of weapon from the vehicle," he said.
"The school was advised and placed in lockdown ... police are now investigating the allegations."
Prior to the end of the lockdown, parents expressed frustration about the lack of information they'd received.
Kristy Kolomaka, the mother of one Year 12 student, said it wasn't a great start to the HSC exams.
"It's a bit stressful," she said. "This is their first exam and they've got their second English exam tomorrow.
"Not only is it cutting into their study time - the last thing they need to worry about is their safety."
Students flooded out after the gates opened, saying they had not been told the reason for the lockdown and had been quite concerned.
As for the first HSC exam? According to one Year 12 student, that at least went well: "We are the first students with this new English syllabus, and the exam was pretty good, I felt prepared for it."
Not prepared however for the police operation that awaited them as they finished: "I was a bit anxious having to stay back and wait," the student said.
