The Woodlands High School in Texas was placed on lockdown after a phone threat prompted a major law enforcement response, with a student reportedly arrested and the campus searched for possible weapons and explosives.
Conroe Independent School District police received the call at about 12.15pm on Wednesday, with the caller claiming someone in the school car park intended to “shoot up” the campus and had planted pipe bombs.
The school was secured as officers from local, state and federal agencies, along with fire and emergency medical crews, attended. Armed officers were seen searching the buildings and grounds.
Montgomery County Sheriff Wesley Doolittle said all students and teachers were safe, with no reported injuries and no evidence that shots had been fired on campus.
Officials said nothing suspicious was found during the search. The lockdown was lifted shortly before 3pm, after which students were taken by bus to Bear Branch Park to be reunited with their families.
All pupils were transported to the collection point, including those who had driven themselves to school. Parents were told to wait for instructions from the school rather than going directly to the campus, where heavy traffic was affecting emergency crews and school buses.
The Woodlands High School lockdown
Reports circulating during the incident suggested a student had made a threat on social media several days earlier, then left a classroom and was taken into custody on Wednesday. The reported arrest had not been formally confirmed by the school district or sheriff’s office.
Authorities were investigating the origin of the phone call and said criminal charges would be pursued if appropriate.
Police also warned that an altered and reposted social media message had spread during the response, causing further alarm. They said the post was unrelated to the incident at the school.
A separate childcare provider mistakenly told families there was an active shooter on the campus. Officials stressed that no active shooter had been found at any point.
