Butler High School is on lockdown after receiving threatening calls, according to students inside. Pennsylvania State Police (PSP) have locked down the campus.
PSP tweeted at 12:50 p.m. that all active shooter and bomb threats have been cleared or are in the process of being cleared.
Slippery Rock High School has not received any threats, according to Slippery Rock Borough Police Officer Derek Dickey.
Police have confirmed that these “swatting calls” came from a male caller with a Middle Eastern accent. Calls were received by 911 call centers rather than the school districts themselves.
None of the schools in Butler County have received active shooter or bomb threats. Threats seem to be directed at schools north of Slippery Rock, according to Angelo Angelucci, the Slippery Rock Area School District superintendent.
New Castle, Hopewell, Chalfont, Central Catholic and Oakland Catholic school districts have reported active shooter and bomb hoax calls to the PSP beginning at 8 a.m.
Other districts that have not received threats or calls from PSP have gone into lockdown or evacuated as a precaution, including Laurel Highlands and Forrest Hills school districts. All calls were of a similar nature.
The New Castle City Police Department received their call at around 10:30 a.m. The school was put on lockdown immediately, and NCPD officers were quickly on the scene to clear the school.
Other areas like Baldwin-Whitehall School District have suspended all outdoor activities like recess and sports practices. Several schools have temporarily barred parents from campus and organized early dismissals.
At Oakland Catholic, parents will be allowed to pick up their children after the school accounts for all students.
The Rocket will update this story as it develops.
