Found Bullet Prompts Shelter In Place At Gaudet Middle School

MIDDLETOWN, RI — A shelter in place order was lifted at Gaudet Middle School on Thursday afternoon after a bullet was found inside the school. The Middletown Police Department investigated and found no "imminent threat," the school department said.

The shelter in place order was announced around 1:15 p.m. after a bullet was found in the seventh grade hallway, school officials said. The bullet was brought to administration and police were immediately contacted.

"Police are currently investigating and no imminent danger has been determined," the school department said at the time.

An hour later, the shelter in place order was lifted, and all students were dismissed at the usual time.

"Be assured that the Middletown School Department takes all threats seriously and we work collaboratively with the Middletown Police Department to ensure that safety measures and protocols at our Middletown schools are a priority," the department wrote.

During the shelter in place, students and school employees were allowed to move freely "within their enclosed classrooms or work areas, but no one is allowed to leave the room or are until further instructions are received," meaning that instruction continued in the classrooms, but no one was allowed to leave until the order was lifted, the department said.

School officials did not say if police determined where the bullet came from.