More police at Reynoldsburg High School Monday after homecoming dance fight Saturday

There were more police officers at both of Reynoldsburg High School's campuses Monday morning after multiple fights Saturday disrupted a homecoming dance.

In an email to parents on Sunday night, high school principal Scott Bennett wrote that school officials have begun an investigation and have identified some of those responsible for the "issues" at the dance.

"Those students will not be allowed on school grounds as we continue our investigation and make decisions on appropriate school and criminal consequences," Bennett wrote.

"Unfortunately, a great week of Homecoming activities came to an awful end at the Homecoming dance Saturday night," he wrote. "Fighting broke out and the crowd had to be evacuated. Police on hand had to use pepper spray to disperse the crowd. It was a terrible way to end the week and not a representation of the behaviors we expect from our Raider community."

One student had to be treated for a reaction to pepper spray.

Bennett wrote that there were no guns involved as rumored. "There were some balloons that popped and we believe that noise is what was reported initially as gunshots," he wrote. "Video has been reviewed and I want to make sure that everyone knows that there was no weapon involved."

On Monday, students were not permitted to leave their classroom during their scheduled class periods, and there were additional staff in the halls during class changes. On Tuesday, both high school campuses were operating without additional restrictions.

Reynoldsburg Police Chief Curtis Baker said on Monday that two special duty officers were at the dance, and had to break up multiple fights, using pepper spray in the process.

Baker said he doesn't know why the fights started, but an investigation is continuing. He also said there were no gunshots.

Bennett wrote to parents: "I assure you that the consequences will be equal to the severity of this incident and we will move forward with a safe environment for all of our students to learn in."

On Sunday, Reynoldsburg Superintendent Tracy Reed wrote that students involved could face 10-day suspensions coupled with recommendations for expulsion.

mferench@dispatch.com

@MarkFerenchik

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: More police at Reynoldsburg High School Monday after fight at dance