Woodland Hills follows Penn Hills with new restrictions, safety measures for football games

In response to a shooting Friday night that forced the evacuation of Woodland Hills High School’s football stadium and an early end to the football game, district officials at Woodland Hills announced immediate changes to their policy on ticketed events.

In a letter to district parents and the community, Woodland Hills Superintendent Daniel Castagna said that while the incident did not take place on district property, “the administrative staff feels strongly that this is a good time to revisit our safety procedures.”

For ticketed events in the future:

• Student tickets will only be sold at school.

• Middle and high school students will only be allowed entry with a student ticket and a student ID, which will be issued in the coming school week.

• Students from districts other than the school Woodland Hills is playing that evening will not be allowed entry.

• There will be no entry following the first quarter.

• Mirroring the NFL’s practice, bags brought into all athletic events must be clear.

• All spectators must be seated or moving toward seating areas at all times. Congregating crowds will be asked to move.

Police responded to reports of gunfire shortly after 10 p.m. Friday night outside the school’s Wolvarena. A man was found shot in the leg walking on the 900 block of Oak Avenue in Turtle Creek. He was treated and later released from the hospital.

Woodland Hills was playing a home game against Penn Hills. The sounds of the gunfire sent fans scrambling from the front of the concession stand by the playing field to the top of the concrete bleachers, Turtle Creek Mayor Adam Forgie said.

About 25 fans flooded into the press box to seek shelter from the chaos.

Penn Hills officials announced Sunday that they were putting additional safety measures in place for home football games this season.