Bomb Threat Forces Putnam Valley Middle School Evacuation
A threat against students at Putnam Valley Middle School forced an evacuation of the building last Wednesday.
Two handwritten notes were found a few hours apart that a student in the school had written, one at 10:55 a.m. and another at about 2 p.m. After the first note was found, students were evacuated from the building and into the auditorium of Putnam Valley High School. Both schools were then placed on a “lock-out” condition during the duration of the incident that meant no visitors were allowed to enter either building.
From about 11:30 a.m. to 12:45 p.m., sheriff deputies and state troopers with bomb sniffing dogs searched the middle school, but found no explosives or weapons. Students were allowed to return to the building afterward.
Later on in the day, sheriff’s officials and school authorities determined that a male student from the middle school had allegedly written the notes. His name was not released.
In a letter to the community in the wake of the incident, Superintendent of School Dr. Frances Wills thanked parents and community members for “your trust and patience as we take action to protect students and staff, assess the facts and risks and work with law enforcement.”
“After every incident we review our procedures to ensure that our communication and protocols are as effective as possible,” part of the letter from Wills read.
