Phoned-in hoaxes prompted shelter-in-place at two Palo Alto schools

An unconfirmed threat towards Gunn High School in Palo Alto Monday afternoon led that school and nearby Fletcher Middle School to being given shelter-in-place orders, according to Palo Alto police.

There was also a reported lockdown at Miramonte High School in Orinda over a similar threat, but so far neither schools nor police had provided any conformation.

According to a social media post by the department at 2:35 p.m., Palo Alto police officers are on scene at Gunn High School at 780 Arastradero Road to investigate the threat. School officials placed the campus in a "shelter-in-place" status while officers investigate.   

A subsequent tweet confirmed that all students and staff are currently safe. Officials also placed Fletcher Middle School at 655 Arastradero Road under a "shelter-in-place" order as a precautionary measure given its proximity to Gunn High School.   

Police said they would share updates as officers get additional information to share. A news release will follow the investigation into the incident.

Shortly after 3 p.m., police said they had uncovered no evidence to confirm that any actual threat exists as officers search the campus, but were continuing the shelter-in-place while officers investigate.

By 3:40 p.m., police had made a thorough search of the campus and found no threat, they said. By 3:50 p.m. the students were permitted to leave. 

Palo Alto Police later released details about the unfounded threat, saying that two separate callers phoned police dispatch this afternoon to report they had seen a person with a rifle walking towards Gunn High School. The school also received a simultaneous bomb threat. 

Investigators determined that the calls were hoaxes and are actively working to identify the suspects. 

The first call came in at about 1:51 p.m., with the male caller stating he had seen a teen boy walking towards Gunn High School with a rifle strapped to his back and carrying two pipe bombs. The second caller, also male, stated he had seen a man in his twenties wearing body armor walking towards the school while carrying a rifle. 

Both callers provided information that led police believe it was possible the calls were hoaxes, but officers responded to the school immediately and treated the incident from the outset as though the calls were legitimate. At about 1:53 p.m., Gunn High administrators received a phoned threat from a male caller who said he was on his way to the school with a bomb. That person identified himself with a name and date of birth that did not appear to correspond to a real person.

Chopper video also showed police on the Miramonte High School campus with guns drawn after a similar reported threat. So far, there has been information released by authorities regarding that incident.

However, Palo Alto police said detectives were also working to see if Gunn High School incident might be connected to a similar event reported at a high school in Orinda.

In:
• School Threat
• Palo Alto