Elementary students at Holy Family School were reminded this morning to be wary of strangers after a suspected abduction attempt Tuesday afternoon.

Shortly before 3 p.m., an unknown man driving a dark red van approached a 10-year-old boy outside the Porter Creek building shortly before school let out for the day.

The youngster was out of class early, waiting for his father to pick him up for a dentist appointment when the red van drove into the bus loop in front of the Wann Road school.

The stranger in the driver's seat rolled down the passenger side window and told the boy in a 'threatening tone' to get into the van, Whitehorse RCMP's Staff Sgt. Ray Fast told reporters this morning.

Not recognizing the man, the scared boy turned and ran into his school to tell the principal.

Meanwhile, the van drove away. Police are asking for the public's help to locate the van and its driver.

Abductions by strangers are very rare.

The incident happened within sight of the school's office located near the entrance, Holy Family principal Ted Hupe said today.

'He was just in front of the school, waiting for his dad, and he came ripping right back into the office,' Hupe said of the student.

'He (suspect) came right into the bus loop, so he came right up to the building.'

Students are taught in school to be careful about strangers, he said.

'It's incredibly disconcerting,' the principal said. 'For us, the kids' safety is our prime concern.

'When someone comes up like that, it gives everyone a bit of a shakeup.'

The school keeps all its exterior doors locked except for the front door for exactly the sort of incident that happened Tuesday afternoon, said Hupe.

The locked doors prevent people from wandering into the building, and the front door is left unlocked so students can run back in and make their way to the office, which is right off the main entrance.

A school policy aimed at safety also requires parents to come inside when picking up children.

After the Catholic school's Ash Wednesday celebration this morning, Hupe spoke to all the students in the gym. He reminded them to be mindful of safety, suggesting students walk together and look out for younger siblings when making their way to school in the morning.

Hupe is also sending home a note to parents this evening with details he has about what happened.

Many of the students have been asking questions, the principal noted.

'They're curious,' Hupe said. 'Some are visibly worried. We have a few kids here who are definitely scared.

'First of all, we want to alleviate that fear, but have everyone mindful that there are nasty people out there, unfortunately.'

The suspect driver is between 30 to 40 years old, sporting short, dark, curly hair, possibly with grey mixed in, Fast said this morning.

He has dark skin, possibly tanned, and wore a blue jacket and black pants.

The dark red van, possibly an older model, could be either a minivan or a full-sized van. It has tinted windows, possibly a black roof rack and the rear windows are covered with either plywood or cardboard.

'The student was visibly shaken,' said Fast, noting that in the student's mind, the attempt to abduct him was very real.

Police don't think it was a prank, and believe a van did approach the child.

'It's not a case for panic, but it is a concern,' the Whitehorse RCMP detachment commander said.

News bulletins about the abduction attempt went out over the Whitehorse radio waves at 5 p.m. yesterday. As well, police have had at least one phone call since making the public plea for people to keep an eye out for the red van.

It may be that the driver had legitimately gone to pick up a student and mistakenly approached the wrong youngster, Fast said.

'There could be a totally logical explanation, which is what we're hoping,' Fast said, asking if that's the case, that the driver come to the police and explain what happened.

Possibly in response to the Porter Creek incident, a woman in Riverdale called police Tuesday afternoon to report what she thought might be another attempt to take a child.

She'd spotted a young child walking hand-in-hand with an older male along the Yukon River near the Whitehorse Rapids Fish Ladder.

The child waved at the passerby, and she didn't know if the wave was legitimate or something else, Fast said.

Investigators found the pair and spoke to them, determining nothing untoward was going on.

Anyone with information is asked to call Whitehorse RCMP at 667-5555 or make anonymous tips to Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.