Lockdown lifted around 2 p.m. Thursday after police give an all-clear notice
By Sam Catanzaro
A lockdown has been lifted at Santa Monica High School after a bomb threat Thursday was determined to be a hoax.
According to Santa Monica High School Principal Marae Cruce Principal Marae Cruce, around 11:42 a.m. Thursday a switchboard operator received a phoned-in bomb threat saying a bomb was set to go off within five minutes.
“The school contacted the police immediately following this phone call,” Cruce said.
The school went into immediate lockdown with students sheltering in place as the Santa Monica Police Department (SMPD) and administrators swept the campus.
Around 2 p.m. the threat was deemed to be a hoax and students were released.
“The Santa Monica Police Department has given an all-clear that our school is safe to resume as normal. Students have been dismissed to go to lunch and allowed to leave campus at this time. This will be the dismissal bell,” the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District in an email sent to parents. “Thank you for your patience during this Shelter-In-Place. We did this to ensure that we did not have movement around campus after a disturbing phone call that required investigation. Our students acted appropriately and were cooperative during this time.”
