After multiple calls Wednesday and Thursday contained bomb threats at two local high schools — all of which were deemed illegitimate in a matter of hours — officials with the Owensboro Police Department and Daviess County Public Schools Police Department said they are taking measures to increase their preparedness for these situations. Investigations are ongoing, and the caller(s) could face felony terroristic threatening charges.
Owensboro High School received such calls both Wednesday and Thursday. Students and staff were quickly evacuated both days. While the campus essentially shut down for the rest of the day Wednesday, OHS resumed normal activities Thursday afternoon.
Wednesday’s sweep of the building took a few hours, while Thursday’s was much quicker.
OPD Public Information Officer Andrew Boggess said that while he is not able to divulge their tactics on how to determine if a threat is illegitimate, OPD is prepared for threats such as these.
“We coordinated with OPS both times and we were unable to find a device either time. At this point, our Criminal Investigations Division is investigating and we will be increasing our presence throughout OPS, but specifically at OHS,” Boggess said.
Apollo High School received similar calls Thursday afternoon. After a quick evacuation, students and staff were able to return to the school building just 45 minutes later.
Brad Youngman, Lead Law Enforcement Officer for the district’s police department, said that their department follows the best practices that are set forth by the FBI when it comes to responding to bomb threats.
He said those established protocols are reviewed and updated based upon incidents that occur around the country.
Youngman said after threats were made at OHS, the DCPS police department decided to review their procedures and ensure that members knew their role and responsibilities.
“When these things happen from time to time, we’re fortunate that our staff knows how to deal with these things,” Youngman said.
Both schools indicated they will seek charges of felony terroristic threatening for the false bomb threats. It is unclear at this time if any of the threats are related to each other.
