A tense situation unfolded and was later resolved at Kings High School and Kings Junior High School after a swatting incident caused a temporary lockdown of these Warren County educational institutions. The lockdown lasted roughly an hour on Friday morning before authorities gave the all-clear sign. As detailed on the school's website and in reports from WCPO, the police thoroughly searched the campus before lifting the restrictions.
While the lockdown was in effect, Warren County dispatch confirmed that multiple units were deployed to the schools to respond to the emergency call swiftly. According to FOX19 NOW, the Warren County sheriff later verified that there was no actual threat and that the incident was deemed to be swatting, a false report of a serious incident intended to draw a large police response.
In the wake of the lockdown's conclusion, Kings High School communicated to parents and guardians via their website that regular school activities would resume. Nevertheless, the option to sign out students early from the office was also extended, with school buses continuing their normal schedule.
The school district's superintendent, Greg Sears, expressed his dismay during the ordeal, "It's unfortunate that as schools, we're dealing with these types of safety issues and swatting situations that disrupt the educational environment that we so strive to have," he told Local12. In response to emergencies like these, the school has implemented a protocol where their website switches to a "dark mode" functioning solely as an information hub for updates on the active situation.
The emotional toll of these events on families was palpable, as revealed in the words of Lisa Derby, a grandmother of a Kings High School student: "As you can tell, I'm stressed. Anything. Shooter and her getting hurt. Any kid getting hurt," she shared in an interview with Local12. The Warren County Sheriff's Office is now handling the criminal investigation into the swatting call while the community begins to process the scare and seeks to move forward from the unwarranted disruption.
