New Hampshire Schools Hit With ‘Active Shooter’ Hoaxes: Watch

CONCORD, NH — State safety officials confirmed schools received multiple calls reporting active shooter threats in New Hampshire on Thursday.

Limited information is available, but the New Hampshire Department of Safety said it was assisting local law enforcement agencies in responding to calls.

“The New Hampshire Information Analysis Center is heavily involved in coordinating these investigations,” Vanessa Palange, a community outreach coordinator for the department of safety, said. “Other jurisdictions across the country have reported receiving hoax calls.”

Palange said while the reports appear to be hoaxes, all threats were being taken seriously until such time as their validity is determined.

“Everyone is encouraged to report any suspicious activity to their local law enforcement agency,” she said.

Threat Incident At Concord Catholic School

In Concord, an active shooter incident was reported at a city school just before 10 a.m.

According to dispatch, the call came from a Florida number, with the caller stating they were a math teacher. Dispatch lost contact with the caller and attempted to reach them again, to no avail, while police figured out which school was involved in the threat.

Within two minutes, teams converged on St. John Regional School on South Street but found the doors locked. Police breached the building and found no one inside. St. John students were not at the school but in the parish hall of Christ the King Parish Church, practicing Christmas carols.

Concord fire and rescue teams staged on Storrs Street while calling in mutual aid to the city for coverage.

Concord police and others conducted second and third searches with a full brigade of officers. Later, all students and faculty were accounted for. About 15 minutes into the event, while realizing there was no shooter in the school, law enforcement agencies began reporting similar situations around the state.

Several Concord School District SAU 8 schools, which have undergone extensive safety training, were placed on “secure campus” mode, with no one being allowed in or out of buildings. Penacook Elementary School was also placed on lockdown, according to a parent.

At around 10:30 a.m., police began to clear units from staging areas.

According to scanner chatter, police continued to check various school buildings around the city.

State Responds

In a statement, Gov. Chris Sununu thanked state agencies for assisting other law enforcement entities dealing with the hoaxes.

“All threats will be taken seriously until such time as their validity is determined,” he said, “and we remain on top of this situation.”

Kimberly Houghton, a communications administrator for the New Hampshire Department of Education, said officials were asking school leaders "to be alert and cognizant but to also understand that local law enforcement agencies are aware of the situation and monitoring it closely." She said safety was a top priority at all New Hampshire schools.

"With that in mind, we are asking you and your administrators to do what is in the best interest of your schools, but also understand that everything is being done by the New Hampshire Information Analysis Center to keep us updated," she said. "At this time, we do not wish to create additional disruptions to our school facilities, knowing that these reports are believed to be a hoax."

According to reports, other schools receiving threats include Claremont, Dover, Franklin, Keene, and Portsmouth.

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