ROSEBURG, OR -- Bend Senior High is among numerous schools around the state targeted in a new rash of fake threats. Douglas County, Medford, Ashland and Hermiston also reported calls Tuesday of a school shooting, later determined to be false.

Douglas County 911 was overrun Tuesday morning by parents calling to check on reports of possible school shooters after social media posts indicated there was an active incident in Roseburg. Douglas County Sheriff’s Lt. Brad O’Dell tried to calm parents' fears in a live Facebook video. "I want to assure everyone that these reports, so far, are false," he said, "We’ve responded to three incidents at this point. Every single one of those have been unfounded."

Lt. O’Dell called the reports “Swatting” and said in the video, "Swatting is intended to generate panic and intended to generate a police response to specific areas. So far, we’ve received three reports at various schools throughout Douglas County. Every single one of these reports, at this point, is false." He added, "With that said, we’re going to continue to take them seriously. If there is another report, we will respond accordingly. We will take that as if it were active and we will investigate that until which point we are confident it is not an active incident."

He says similar reports were made across the country in the past 24 hours, "Multiple of our other jurisdictions in Oregon are making similar responses this morning. We believe that these are false, intended to cause panic."

A Bend-La Pine Schools official tells KBND News Bend Police received a call through non-emergency dispatch and determined it was a hoax, similar to the incident on February 9th. A School Resource Officer was at Bend High when the call came in Tuesday, and was able to quickly determine it was not credible. Classes were not disrupted. 

The FBI later tweeted information about possible sentences for those convicted of calling in a fake threat against a school. An FBI spokesperson shared the following tips with KBND News:

• Don’t ever post or send any hoax threats online… period.
• If you are a target of an online threat, alert your local law enforcement immediately.
• If you see a threat of violence posted on social media, immediately contact local law enforcement or your local FBI office. Members of the public can always submit a tip to the FBI at tips.fbi.gov.
• Notify authorities but don’t share or forward the threat until law enforcement has had a chance to investigate – this can spread misinformation and cause panic.
• If you are a parent or family member, know that some young people post these threats online as a cry for attention or as a way to get revenge or exert control. Talk to your child about the proper outlet for their stress or other emotions, and explains the importance of responsible social media use and the consequences of posting hoax threats.