Sto-Rox School District leaders addressed safety during a school board meeting on Thursday, weeks after a student went missing in their care.

On Sept. 2, a 5-year-old boy with autism who went missing during recess at Sto-Rox Primary Center was found safe after an hours-long search.  

"Could you explain to us how this happened?" KDKA's Mamie Bah asked Sto-Rox School Board President Cameron Culliver.

"The teacher did everything right," Culliver said. "It was a matter of literally turning their head for a second to get things in order with the kids. And then, unfortunately, the child did wander off."

Sto-Rox School board members spoke for the first time on Thursday since 5-year-old Jedadiah Jackson went missing during recess. The kindergartener, who is non-verbal, was located more than seven hours later.

KDKA asked the district what's being done to prevent this from happening again.

"A fence is one of the biggest things we're making sure we're putting up expeditiously," Culliver said. 

Sto-Rox Superintendent Sonya Coleman appeared virtually during the meeting. Coleman said there was one staff member and 17 students on the playground that day, and while a fence hasn't been installed yet, students are still allowed to play outside for recess.

"Are the teachers being provided with staff members to help them at the time being?" KDKA's Mamie Bah asked.

"There's an extra security guard outside. They are outside for 15 minutes, 14 minutes per recess." Coleman continued. "Outside the perimeter, there's an extra security guard until the fencing goes up." 

Coleman said an exact timeline cannot be given for when the fence will go up, though the district is going through the bidding process currently. 

The board said an internal investigation was conducted, and it was determined that the teacher didn't do anything wrong.