Parents terrified by the deadly school shooting in South Florida are spending big bucks on bulletproof backpacks for their kids, according to reports.
Massachusetts-based Bullet Blocker — which sells the fortified bags for between $200 to $500 — has seen a 30 percent surge in sales since Wednesday’s massacre in Parkland, according to TMZ.
The company sold 500 of the backpacks on Thursday alone, owner Joe Curran told the news outlet, adding that the majority were headed to Florida.
The backpacks, which weigh about 4 1/2 pounds, are lined with Kevlar, a fiber used in bulletproof vests that are used by law enforcement.
Bullet Blocker describes Curran on its website as “a real-life father who wanted to do all that he could to protect his two school-aged children after witnessing the horror of the Virginia Tech massacre.”
The former US Army Ranger, sheriff’s deputy and firearms instructor invented “My Child’s Pack,” the first bulletproof backpack designed for students, according to the company.
One of the backpacks listed on the site is the $330 BulletBlocker NIJ IIIA, which is available in three colors and contains an anti-ballistic panel weighing about 20 ounces.
Bullet Blocker says it’s capable of stopping .357 and .44 Magnum rounds, 9 mm bullets and .45-caliber hollow-point ammo and more.
The company also caters to deep-pocketed adult customers with a range of luxury bulletproof items — including a $3,100 Gucci diaper bag, a $3,200 Gucci jacket, a $5,225 Hermes bag and a $5,895 Armani suit.
Meanwhile, another company’s bulletproof backpacks were put to the test at a Florida shooting range, where a .40-caliber handgun, 9 mm pistol and a 12-gauge shotgun were fired at them.
The armor stopped the handgun rounds and shotgun pellets from completely penetrating the backpacks made by Guard Dog Security, according to WFTV.
But the backpacks – even with added textbooks – were unable to stop a full-metal jacket bullet fired from an AR-15, the kind of assault weapon used in this week’s bloodbath.
Yasir Sheikh, president of Guard Dog Security, said his company wasn’t preying on parents’ fears.
“It’s not as foreign anymore,” Sheikh told WFTV. “A few years ago, people would kind of frown at bulletproof backpacks, but people have accepted the idea.”