MCC middle school students moved to another school following bomb threat.

MCC middle school students moved to another school following bomb threat.

By Rob Alway, Editor-in-Chief.

SCOTTVILLE — Mason County Central schools remain in lockdown as of noon today, following a bomb threat that was made against the middle school on social media. According to Superintendent Jeff Mount, Ludington High School Principal Dan Mesyar had become aware of the posting this morning and then informed MCC High School Principal Jeff Tuka. Mount said the school then immediately followed its threat protocols, which included contacting 911 and securing the buildings, also known as “lock-down.”

Parents were then notified using the school’s alert system through phone and email. Mount said the other schools in the county were also notified.

Mount said the student who made the threat was immediately located and was interviewed by Scottville Police Department and Mason County Sheriff’s Office. Mount said the student claimed the posting was a “joke.”

“We take any kind of threat to our students very seriously,” Mount said. “It is likely this student will face criminal prosecution through juvenile court and our board of education will have to discuss expulsion.”

Mount said the school’s top priority was the safety of the students. “This does not necessarily mean moving the students out of the building immediately,” he said. “There are many cases when the threat is not actually inside the building. We did determine that this student would not have had any access to the other school buildings, however as a precaution, those buildings were placed on secure mode as well. Eventually, middle school students were moved to the Upper Elementary building, allowing for the Michigan State Police bomb squad to check the building with a bomb detecting dog.

“While this may have been a joke to the student who posted this, it certainly is no joke to us,” Mount said.  “Our schools are still in lockdown and I can assure parents that their children are safe. We are asking that parents only pick up their children if they had already planned to do so, such as for an appointment. The school schedule will remain normal, however.”

Responding to the scene were Scottville Police Department, Mason County Sheriff’s Office, Scottville Fire Department, Life EMS, and Mason County Emergency Management.

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