One 16-year-old boy was stabbed and another cut during a fight at the Berkeley Institute yesterday.

The stab victim suffered multiple wounds, while the other suffered an injured hand.

The school was put on "lockdown" after the incident in a boys' bathroom at the end of the lunch break, with students locked in their classrooms until the end of the day.

The two injured 16-year-olds were taken to King Edward VIII Memorial Hospital, though neither suffered life-threatening injuries. Berkeley students who spoke to this newspaper in the aftermath of the stabbing attributed it to suspected gang rivalry, possibly involving a dispute over drugs.

One 16-year-old male pupil described the incident as "a tragedy," telling The Royal Gazette"Some guy from town got stabbed. We didn't see it but some guy's neck was cut and he got a gash on his side and the security guards started pushing the students into their classrooms."

Another teenage boy added "This thing's just messed up. I knew Berkeley was violent enough as it is (but) I didn't know someone could stab somebody."

Police spokesman Dwayne Caines went live on the radio airwaves in the immediate aftermath of the stabbing to urge parents to stay calm and not come to the school, which has over 700 students.

"The school is secure. Police are on the scene," he stressed at the time. "Police believe it's in hand and we do not want parents to panic. The incident is now under control and students are carrying on as usual in their classrooms."

He added "Both the 16-year-olds have been taken to King Edward VII Memorial Hospital where they're being treated for what's been classified as non life-threatening injuries. An active Police investigation has commenced with officers from the central Criminal Investigation Unit."

Mr. Caines refused to comment on what weapon was used and whether it has been recovered. Police remained on the scene for the rest of the afternoon, and security outside the school was tight. Security guards refused to discuss what had happened and chased members of the media off the premises. However, one was heard remarking that the incident was linked to an altercation at the Rangers vs Boulevard football match on Saturday.

Quizzed over this, Police spokesman Mr. Caines said: "It is far too early in the investigation to link both incidents. However, the relevant lines of inquiry are being followed up on."

Pupils pouring out of the school gates shortly after 3.30 p.m were shocked by what happened. One 15-year-old boy said "Everyone's weirded out. The school's been on lockdown ever since it happened." He claimed that the fight began because "Someone had drugs it was a fight over drugs."

A 14-year-old male student commented "I'm upset. This guy got stabbed. He just came out of nowhere and he stabbed him."

Another 14-year-old boy said "I saw someone run through the door and saw the security guard pulling someone from the courtyard. I was a little scared when it happened."

A 13-year-old girl said "It was sort of shocking. We didn't know what was going on. I just want everybody to be safe."

In a statement, school principal Michelle Simmons said "We were alerted to an incident in the boys' bathroom at the end of the lunch period wherein a student had been stabbed in the side. In accordance with standard operating procedure, the Police were called and the school was put on lockdown."

Mrs. Simmons added: "It is notable that neither student involved in the incident has a history of any major misconduct at the school. The school climate is quite positive right now, especially since we are focused on acknowledging and rewarding good work and positive behaviour."

Commissioner of Education Wendy McDonell issued a statement expressing her disappointment and saying "This year started out on such a positive note. Education Minister El James and I visited the victim and his family at the hospital and we wish him a speedy recovery.

"I commend the staff of the Berkeley Institute for executing their emergency plan which ensured the safety of the remaining students on campus. I cannot offer any further comment regarding today's incident as an active Police investigation is ongoing."

Giving an update last night on the condition of the victims, Mr. Caines said the stab victim remained in hospital but the boy with the hand wound had been treated and released.

Politicians call for a step-up in the security at schools

Calls for school security to be tightened came from across the political spectrum in the aftermath of the Berkeley Institute stabbing.

Speaking out after two 16-year-old boys were hospitalised one with multiple stab wounds and one with a cut hand Dale Butler of the PLP said: "We'd better get on top of this. It's getting out of hand."

Students leaving Berkeley after yesterday's incident said security guards do patrol the school. They also check students' bags to ensure they're not stealing the school's laptops, but searches of pupils themselves are not done routinely. And unlike schools in the US, there are no metal detectors.

According to Mr. Butler, a former school principal, it's time for a tougher approach as the experience of schools in the US shows that "it can only get worse." He explained: "When I was at St. George's Secondary I had nine buildings and no security guards. I spent the day walking around searching bags breaking rules to ensure security.

"If schools do the usual 'hi and be done' (security checks) it's not going to work. They're going to have to do more. And whatever solutions they come up with, we need to be supportive of them. I was told I was violating their human rights because I was conducting bag searches, but I was protecting every student in the school."

Shadow Education Minister Grant Gibbons said: "The stabbing incident today at the Berkeley Institute is shocking news. All parents expect that when they send their children to school they will be safe. Over the past year our community has witnessed a disturbing increase in student-on-student violence. It's clear that the serious issue of youth violence is now an increasing threat in the public school system. This is totally unacceptable.

"Government and the Ministry of Education must immediately reassure parents that when they send their children to school they will be safe from personal attacks and violence. If there's a need for increased security in the public education system then let's do it. At the very least, this should prompt a safety review in our public schools."

Minister of Education Elvin James said: "We're reviewing school security all the time. We never stop reviewing it. Every month we talk about the security in schools and our budget has gone up tremendously. The only thing we do not have is metal detectors. We have security guards there and because of what's happened we'll look at security again."

Mr. James said he could reassure parents that Berkeley is a safe environment despite yesterday's "unfortunate incident." This was echoed by Calvin White Sr., chairman of the Berkeley board of governors who said: "Berkeley has over 700 students. Two of them had an altercation. Unfortunately, one of them got stabbed, but over 700 were doing what they were supposed to do. Our perspective is there's much more going right than going wrong."

Mr. White said there are a number of initiatives in place to prevent such incidents, including a student council and plans to increase the number of prefects. It's hoped this will give the young people a greater voice in what goes on at the school and help with "positive peer reinforcement." A new merit awards programme is also going well.

"Something I would like to see get out (in the media) is that the vast majority of the students are just as disappointed by what's happened as we are," he added.