At the end of the school day on Feb. 5 at Clearview Regional Middle School, the Harrison Township Police Department school resource officer was informed that a student found writings in a bathroom indicating there were bombs in the school. At that point, any student and staff that were remaining in the building were evacuated from the building.
Members of the Gloucester and Camden County Sherriff’s Departments, the Deptford Township Police Department and the Mantua Township Police Department K9 units conducted a sweep of the middle school over the next few hours. The building was officially cleared, deemed safe and locked down, according to a post on the department’s Facebook page.
“As always, we take all threats very seriously and the safety of the students and staff remains our first priority,” said the release.
The incident is still under investigation and no information is available on any potential suspects at this point, said Harrison Township Police Department Detective Adam McEvoy in an email.
“The response from our police department and the assisting local agencies went very smoothly,” said McEvoy.
The department also stated that the response of students and parents went smoothly too.
In an effort to be extra cautious, the department implemented a controlled opening for the following school day with the help of Mantua Township Police Department Patrolman Bill Donovan and his K9 partner, Boomer. Middle school parents who are dropping off their children were directed to the appropriate location.
