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Columbine High School on lockout: Threats of planted bombs, ‘suspicious person’ in the area Columbine High School on lockout: Threats of planted bombs, ‘suspicious person’ in the area
(35 minutes later)
School officials in Jefferson County say they have placed 24 schools, including an infamous Columbine High School, on lockout in Colorado because of a “suspicious person” spotted in the area. More than two dozen schools were placed on lockout in Colorado, following threats about explosives being planted at Columbine High – the scene of the infamous 1999 school shooting. The alarm turned out to be false.
The measure was taken after police said a “suspicious person” had made “threats” at the Columbine High School – the scene of one of the US's most infamous school shooting massacres. On Thursday morning, an anonymous caller phoned Jefferson county police and claimed that several explosive devices had been planted inside Columbine High School. “The person claimed to be hiding outside with a gun,” said Mike Taplin, spokesman for the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office.
The local sheriff's office issued a warning calling on people to avoid the area and also specifically urged parents no to come to pick up their children from the Columbine school, adding that the “kids and staff are safe.” In response, Columbine HS, as well as 23 other schools in the area, were put on lockout. Authorities called on people to avoid the area and specifically urged parents not to attempt to pick up their children. All “kids and staff” were reported to be safe.
A person phoned the police on Thursday morning and claimed that multiple explosives were planted inside Columbine High, Mike Taplin, a spokesman for Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office. It is yet unclear if any real danger has been identified. Large groups of various security forces and a bomb squad were dispatched to the scene. Photos published on social media showed armed officers patrolling the grounds around Columbine HS as well as a neighboring Clement Park, in which there is a memorial to the victims of the 1999 school shooting.
Video and photos from the scene posted on social media show a heavy police presence near Columbine High and at the nearby Clement Park, which is hosting a memorial to the victims of the 1999 school shooting. “The perimeter was searched and secured…So far we have not found anything to validate the threats that have been made,” Taplin said, explaining that the alarm appeared to have been false.
A bomb disposal squad has been deployed to the scene. Later, the police said they had found no evidence of any explosive devices being planted at the school. The perimeter was searched and secured. The school was placed on lockout. So far we have not found anything to validate the threats that have been made,” Taplin said. Still, all the affected schools were scheduled to remain on lockout up to 14:45 local time (21:45 GMT). The person behind the false alarm has not yet been identified.
In 1999, Columbine High School witnessed a massacre that is still considered one of the deadliest mass killings in US history. Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, two of the school’s senior students murdered 12 of their fellow students and one teacher, injuring 21 more people. The two took their own lives afterwards.
The incident has inspired a whole online community of “Columbiners” obsessed with the massacre and its perpetrators and led to what has been described as copycat attacks in other schools, in the US and beyond.
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