A bomb threat was found this morning at the Voorheesville Middle and High School building but proved to be a false alarm, according to school district officials.
Two girls found the bomb threat inscribed on a bathroom stall wall in the building Tuesday morning, according Superintendent of Schools Teresa Thayer Snyder. Albany County Sheriff Craig Apple Sr. said the handwritten read, “There is a bomb in this school.”
The girls then informed the school dean of the alleged threat, which spurred district administrators to contact law enforcement shortly after 9 a.m. Students began evacuating around 9:30 a.m. and the building was cleared before 10 a.m.
Students were evacuated for almost two hours while bomb detection dogs swept the building for any explosives, but found no threat. The middle school and high school are contained within the same building.
“We had incredible police cooperation,` said Snyder. “I had never seen so many dogs. They swept the building quite thoroughly and found it was nothing.”
Students in grades 6 to 8 were evacuated to Voorheesville Elementary School, and 9 to 12 grade students were sent to St. Matthew’s Church. Students and staff returned around 11:15 a.m. after the building was cleared. Lunch was being prepared as students returned.
“We are going to resume the day as though it was a normal,` said Snyder. The school day followed a two-hour delay schedule.
Authorities are continuing to investigate the incident and have not identified any suspects.
“We are going to do our best to find out and we will deal with whoever did that when it happens,` said Snyder. “It is not something that typically happens here, so it is obliviously discouraging when something like this happens.”
Several agencies assisted the Albany County Sheriff’s Office, which included the Albany Police Department, New York State Police, Schenectady County Sheriff’s Office, SUNY Police Department, Troy Police Department and the Transportation Security Authority.
Snyder said authorities were `very efficient” and she thanked the church for temporarily housing around 400 students. “The students behaved well and all the faculty and staff pitched in,` she said.
