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Washington Township police determined that the pen-written message was credible enough to warrant a search by the K-9 units from both the county police and sheriff’s departments at 11 o’clock this morning.
They “arrived in record time and immediately began conducting a search,” Schools Supt. Geoffrey W. Zoeller, Jr. said.
All students and personnel were evacuated to the nearby stadium complex Zoeller said. An hour later, county police gave the all-clear and the high-schoolers returned, he said.
“The students only lost one period of instruction,” Zoeller said, thanking the local police and fire departments, as well as the county K-9 teams.
The high school also houses a preschool, and parents were called to pick up their children.
“Many of the preschoolers were scheduled for a full day and parents had to scramble, while panicked over the situation, to figure out how they were going to get their children home safely,” the parent, who has a 3-year-old at the preschool, told CLIFFVIEW PILOT.
“Please know that the safety of our students and personnel is our first priority and we are working with the police to investigate the matter fully,” the superintendent said. “Anyone with any information regarding this incident is encouraged to tell a staff member or go to the local police department.”
Ciocco (above) noted that the third-degree crime of creating a false public alarm is an indictable offense.
“Let’s make an example so other kids wont follow in [the note-writer’s] footsteps,” one parent said.
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