Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
Available On Air Stations
Watch Live

Public Safety

Lockdown Lifted After Threat Made To West Hills High

A San Diego County Sheriff's Department vehicle is shown outside of West Hills High School in Santee, May 26, 2015.
10News
A San Diego County Sheriff's Department vehicle is shown outside of West Hills High School in Santee, May 26, 2015.
A claim that several bombs had been placed at West Hills High School in Santee prompted authorities to place the school on lockdown, May 26, 2015.
Google Maps
A claim that several bombs had been placed at West Hills High School in Santee prompted authorities to place the school on lockdown, May 26, 2015.

A hoax claim that bombs had been placed at West Hills High School Tuesday morning prompted a roughly three-hour lockdown at the campus while law enforcement personnel search the grounds and buildings.

An unidentified youth issued the threat about 9:15 a.m. via a 911 call, saying explosives stashed in four book bags would detonate at the Santee school 20 minutes later.

"It sounded like a (boy) saying that he was tired of being bullied and (that) he had put backpacks around the school that were going to explode, basically," sheriff's spokeswoman Jan Caldwell said. "If this is a hoax, it's a hoax. If not, we have our units here that will take care of it."

Advertisement

Deputies searched the Mast Boulevard campus, finding unattended backpacks in four areas, according to Caldwell. A bomb squad was called in to examine them, finding no dangerous devices or substances.

"We have to take each one of these calls seriously, and that's why we have so many units out here this morning," the spokeswoman said.

The lockdown was lifted in the early afternoon, though the school remained in a lower-level precautionary status known as "secure campus," according to Grossmont Union High School District officials.

KPBS has created a public safety coverage policy to guide decisions on what stories we prioritize, as well as whose narratives we need to include to tell complete stories that best serve our audiences. This policy was shaped through months of training with the Poynter Institute and feedback from the community. You can read the full policy here.