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After Naples High School is evacuated, bomb threat called 'hoax'

Patrick Riley, and Alexi C. Cardona
Naples Daily News
Students, faculty, and staff of Naples High School are evacuated to the nearby Coastland Center Mall parking lot after a bomb threat was received at the school around 9 a.m. this morning Thursday, March 2, 2017 in Naples.

A bomb threat made to Naples High School on Thursday led to a full evacuation, caused panic among students and prompted an hours-long sweep of the campus by law enforcement officers, but it turned out to be "a total hoax," authorities said.

The person who made the threatening call said there were three explosives that would detonate on campus in an hour, according to a statement from Naples police.

Naples police officers and Collier County sheriff's deputies were notified about 9:15 a.m. and responded to sweep the campus.

They found two suspicious packages that ultimately were deemed to be no threat, officials said.

One of the items, found near the school gym, was labeled #3. School administration decided to immediately evacuate all students across Golden Gate Parkway to the Coastland Center mall parking lot, officials said. Students who had not returned home or already left the mall were taken by bus to Gulfview Middle School.

Officers with the Collier County Sheriff's Office sweep the grounds surrounding Naples High School with bomb sniffing dogs at approximately 11 a.m. Thursday, March 2, 2017 in Naples. The Naples Police Department received a bomb threat around 9 a.m. this morning warning officials of a potential threat to the school. The entire school was evacuated to the nearby Coastland Center Mall.

Another suspicious package was found in the area of the football field.

The Collier County bomb squad took X-rays of both packages.

The package labeled #3 was a photography bag that is property of the high school. Surveillance video recorded at the school showed a student left the photography bag unattended when leaving the gym Wednesday, police said. The photography student was interviewed by detectives Thursday and said she accidentally left the bag by the gym, authorities said.

The second suspicious bag was a lunchbox with a thermos inside.

The school was determined clear of explosive devices at 1:45 p.m., police said.

The students who had been taken to Gulfview Middle School were taken home. Student drivers and those who walk to school were taken back to Naples High.

Golden Gate Parkway was closed between Goodlette-Frank Road and U.S. 41 for several hours. The road was reopened at 2:36 p.m., officials said.

"Misinformation of an active shooter event and a student being shot in the school gymnasium were posted on social media during the bomb threat investigation," Naples police said in the statement. "There were no such incidents and no reports of any injuries were made as a result of the bomb threat investigation."

When the bomb threat was made, school district officials first issued a "precautionary code yellow lockdown" at 9:10 a.m. before raising the code to red and evacuating students about 9:30 a.m., said school district spokeswoman Jennifer Kupiec.

Between 20 and 30 units from Naples police, in addition to deputies from the Collier County Sheriff's Office, responded to the high school after police were contacted by the school Thursday morning, said Naples Police spokesman Lt. Seth Finman.

"We always prepare for the worst scenario," he said.

Finman said Naples police were investigating who made the call threatening the school.

Naples High School students were evacuated Thursday morning after a bomb threat was made, according to the Collier County School District.

Students said they had little information when the classrooms were locked down.

Adrian Antoniak, a Naples High junior, was in a chemistry class Thursday morning when the code yellow was issued.

When the situation escalated to code red, his class turned off the lights, locked the classroom door and hid away from the door.

"We heard a commotion outside and didn't know what it was, but it turned out that the school was being evacuated," he said.

Adrian's friend and lacrosse teammate Caleb Craig said it was a scary situation for students.

"We're sitting in the classroom, and all of a sudden (an administrator) comes through the door and yells for everyone to get out and evacuate the school."

No one in Caleb's class knew what was happening until he saw a Snapchat story showing a news article about the bomb threat.

Students, faculty, and staff of Naples High School are evacuated to the nearby Coastland Center Mall parking lot after a bomb threat was received at the school around 9 a.m. this morning Thursday, March 2, 2017 in Naples.

Some students frantically texted parents and friends during the evacuation.

Liz Angeli, a senior at Naples High, texted friends and family in a group text that she was stuck in the computer lab early during the evacuation.

"Barricaded in a comp lab," she texted at 9:54 a.m. before sending a text about 10 minutes later that she was evacuated safely.

The Coastland Center mall sent a text alert to employees saying a "suspicious package" was found at the high school and that students "have been directed to the mall."

Students were expected to resume classes at 7:05 a.m. Friday.