Mon Valley schools react to area hoax threat calls

By LIAM BELAN
lbelan@yourmvi.com
Mon Valley school districts took extra precautions to keep students safe Wednesday after a hoax affected several districts across the state, including much of the Pittsburgh area.
Many districts received fake “swatting” calls Wednesday from an out-of-state phone number telling administrators there was an active shooter on the premises. None of those calls turned out to be true, but local leaders, as well as law enforcement, took extra precautions to ensure the safety of students and staff in the area.
Charleroi Area School District Superintendent Dr. Ed Zelich detailed his account of the events as they never received one of the hoax calls throughout the district but still went into an internal lockdown that allowed students to change classes with law enforcement and administrators assisting students walking outside within the fenced-in, open campus.
“Around 10 a.m., I started getting texts and emails from local superintendents and colleagues that there was a rumor of a school in Beaver County being in lockdown because there was a shooting in the school,” he said. “Then, it got closer to our area with rumors in Laurel Highlands, Frazier and Trinity, and I called our local police department and our school resource officer to see if we could confirm.

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