Updated Sept. 22 at 4:10 p.m.
This article has been updated to include a joint letter from three high school principals.
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On Friday night several fights broke out outside Silver Spring’s Blake High School during a football game with Springbrook High School.
No injuries were reported, and no arrests were made.
According to Montgomery County Police, at 9 p.m. officers working a football security detail requested backup after seeing several groups of teenagers fighting near the tennis courts and parking lot. Montgomery County Public Schools security staff attempted to break up the fights, but hundreds of students ignored repeated requests to leave.
In an attempt to de-escalate the situation. police launched several air pops while ordering the crowd to leave the premises. Air pops are loud sounds that do not release ammunition or pepper. The crowd then began to disperse as more officers arrived and helped move students toward the entrance to the school.
More than a dozen officers responded to the incident. Police and school staff continued to separate students. More than a dozen officers ultimately responded.
Principals’ Letter
Principals from Blake, Springbrook and Paint Branch high schools sent out a joint letter to families about the fights, which they called “serious and troubling.”
After the game ended, school security teams began escorting students to their cars when a small fight broke out on the hill leading to the stadium parking lot, according to their letter. Then, a larger fight began near the gym area involving students from all three schools.
A police officer fired the pepper ball rounds at the ground, which caused “momentary confusion, but was effective in clearing the scene,” the principals wrote.
Administrators and security staff are reviewing camera footage and airdrop videos to identify students that were involved. Identified students will be disciplined, according to the letter.
Under school district protocols, only students from the two participating schools are permitted to attend athletic events.
“We want to be very clear that we strongly condemn the dangerous and disruptive behavior that took place. Fighting, causing injury, and creating unsafe conditions for others will never be tolerated,” the principals wrote.
The letter came from Blake Principal Ahmed Adelekan, Paint Branch Principal Shawaan Robinson and Springbrook Principal Stephanie Valentine.
