BRUNSWICK — Brunswick Police investigated an alleged threat at Harpswell Coastal Academy last week after two people called in with concerns there may be a school shooting, but found the threat wasn’t credible, according to Cmdr. Mark Waltz.
Police went to the school Wednesday after callers the night before said they were concerned about a potential threat. No threats against the school were carried out, he said, adding that no one will be charged.
The threat did not originate on social media, he said, but people who reportedly heard it spread rumors online.
Scott Barksdale, head of school, said in a letter to Harpswell families on Friday that “this week we were reminded of the importance of our schools feeling safe and being safe to everyone in them and to their families at home.”
It is important to communicate any threats to an adult, he wrote, but it is equally important that “once a safety concern has been appropriately reported that it is not then being spread through social media. Not only can this cause potentially unfounded rumors and fear to spread, but it can cause actual harm.”
Barksdale said the police were “incredibly concerned” over the social media storm surrounding the threat, adding that over the next few weeks officers will be visiting the school to help students learn the appropriate ways to respond to safety concerns.
“I think you should do what the people who contacted us did,” Waltz said Monday. “If you see something, say something. In general, I think a lot of things can get worked up unnecessarily and spread hysteria on social media,” he said.
“Everyone needs to feel safe in our schools,” Barksdale said in the letter. “Everyone.”
Barksdale did not return messages requesting comment Monday.
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