Monticello High School Evacuated after Bomb Threat

Monticello High School in Charlottesville was evacuated for approximately 3 hours January 28 due to a bomb threat. Police cleared the scene after nothing suspicious was found.

Bomb Threats

Bomb threats occur with varying frequency, most often in middle and high schools.  Children will think that calling in a fake bomb threat can get them out of class for while.  In fact, false reporting of a bomb threat is a crime.

Schools cannot ignore bomb threats.  Each one must be taken seriously, with schools acting as if each bomb threat is real.  School personnel should have a bomb threat checklist by their phones.  This will allow them to collect as much information from a caller as possible, to pass along to law enforcement.  The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has such a checklist HERE.

Be Prepared

Schools should provide training to all school personnel on not only how to use the checklist, but being able to use one under duress.  When a person realizes they are talking to a person who is threatening them, their heart rate will elevate, reducing cognitive function and fine motor control.

A functional exercise involving the calling in of a bomb threat to each of its five schools showed a Central Indiana public school district that its personnel, who had been recently trained, did not always handle stress well.  The exercise was coordinated with the county's 911 Call Center.  The person taking the call had to use the checklist, then call 911 to relay the information.  Such exercises can identify issues that need to be addressed, and can help innoculate the participants against stress, and so will be more capable in a real bomb threat.

Are your schools prepared?