Heritage High School was locked down for two hours Tuesday afternoon after a receptionist received a phone call threatening a bomb.
Clark County sheriff’s deputies searched the campus while students remained in a shelter-in-place response, but found nothing suspicious.
The phone call came in about 1 p.m. Tuesday, prompting the lockdown and law enforcement’s response to the school, 7825 N.E. 130th Ave.
Deputies set up containment and swept the campus, but ultimately did not find anything suspicious.
“The threat they were looking for was outside the building,” Evergreen Public Schools spokesman Kris Fay said. “That’s where (deputies) were doing their initial sweep. When they were done with that, they also checked the interior of the building.”
When it was received, the credibility of the threat was considered low, said Sgt. Fred Neiman, but the sheriff’s office used caution and activated its bomb threat protocol.
Suspect sought
Though the scene was cleared and all is well, detectives with the sheriff’s office major crimes unit will continue to investigate who was behind what they have called a hoax.
“They’ll work to apprehend the suspect who endangered everyone’s sense of comfort just so they could get a fix,” Neiman said. The person responsible, he added, “put a lot of resources into play … for nothing.”
Parents collected their children at a former supermarket on the corner of Northeast Padden Parkway and Northeast 137th Avenue, and eventually at the school when the lockdown was lifted.
Bus transportation to the school was not available until 4 p.m., but students were allowed to stay on site until that time, according to the district.
The school district offers the following information on its procedures during an emergency: www.evergreenps.org/Parents/Pages/EmergencyInfo.aspx.
Susan Parrish of The Columbian contributed to this report.
