In Pennsylvania, multiple schools were swarmed by a substantial police presence as they probed into false reports of active shooters.
The authorities were called to Central Catholic and Oakland Catholic high schools in Oakland at approximately 10:18 a.m. on Wednesday.
Thankfully, no injuries have been reported, and no active shooter has been discovered at any of the sites.
Furthermore, the lockdowns at the University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Mellon were lifted.
Pittsburgh Public Schools have announced a modified lockdown for the remainder of the day, as a precautionary measure.
The lockdown signifies that only pre-existing appointments or meetings will be acknowledged. The state police have disclosed that the threats were likely swatting calls generated by computers, but they are taking every call seriously.
The PSP Hollidaysburg and Rockview stations have responded to active shooter threats at nearby schools that have been communicated via telephone from the Blair and Bedford county areas, according to the tweets from the state police.
Standard law enforcement protocols are being adhered to for each incident, even though the calls are presumed to be swatting calls generated by computers.
State police have tweeted that they are looking into a sequence of 911 phone calls regarding threats of an active shooter or bomb situation at schools in Pennsylvania. Presently, all assertions in these calls have been deemed false, but the investigation is ongoing.
A spokesperson for Allegheny County stated that they have received three different calls indicating the presence of an active shooter at three separate schools.
They are also aware that comparable reports are coming in from schools outside the county. In each instance, law enforcement is responding but suspects that the reports are untrue. No active shooter has been identified, and there have been no injuries at any school so far.
Law enforcement will continue to thoroughly investigate any reports.
The incident seems to have affected schools in various counties. According to reports, New Castle police received a call from a male who threatened to open fire at New Castle High School.
The school was promptly put under lockdown, and NCPD units arrived within minutes. After being cleared by law enforcement and New Castle Area School District staff, the lockdown was lifted. Similarly, Hopewell High School in Beaver County and Laurel Highland High School in Fayette County received comparable calls.
The FBI Pittsburgh has been informed about multiple swatting incidents in which false reports of an active shooter at a school are made. The FBI takes such incidents seriously since they jeopardize innocent lives.
Police investigate active shooter hoax call across Pennsylvania school districts