UPDATE (7:30 p.m.) -- Bend Police say detectives have determined the phone call originated from outside the country. 

 

BEND, OR -- All Bend-area high schools and Bear Creek Elementary were put into "Secure" status Thursday afternoon. Sheila Miller, with Bend Police, tells KBND News, "Around 1:15, we received a call on non-emergency dispatch from a person saying they were in the Bend High parking lot and threatening to enter the school with weapons. We had a School Resource Officer on scene, and that person was able to immediately put the school into Secure status."

"Secure" means all outside doors are locked but school operations continue inside. Miller says it was lunch time and a number of students were in the parking lot at the time. 

Police responded to Bend High and other Bend-area schools. They searched the campus, including using drones, but Miller says no weapons were found. She says investigators believe it was not a credible threat. 

During the search, an unattended bag was located on the exterior grounds of the school. Out of an abundance of caution, Bend Police cordoned off the affected area at the request of the Oregon State Police Explosives Disposal Unit. The unit responded and at 4 p.m. determined the bag was not a threat. 

More than two dozen law enforcement personnel responded to the scene, including members of the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office and Redmond Police Department. Bend Fire also responded to the scene. 

As a precaution, law enforcement maintained an increased presence at schools throughout the afternoon. 

 

 

This is a developing story