JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A lockdown at Ed White High School had parents in a panic Thursday afternoon.
Parents were on edge after Duval County schools sent out an alert about 2:15 p.m. Many called News4Jax worried about a possible shooting after rumors started going around on social media.
The school district said that just before students were dismissed for the day, it received a student tip about a possible gun on campus. That tip prompted the lockdown.
Ed White High School Parents: Students and staff are safe. Dismissal will be delayed due to a code red. More information to follow.
— DCPS (@DuvalSchools) September 20, 2018
Duval County School Board Police and the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office responded to the campus and stayed until it was announced that there was no gun and students were dismissed for the day.
Principal Traci Battest sent a message out to parents later in the afternoon explaining what happened.
“A thorough search of the school was conducted by law enforcement. No firearm nor an individual with a firearm was located," Battest wrote. "We were on a Code Red for approximately 30 minutes before we were advised the lockdown could be lifted and dismissal procedures could begin.”
There was traffic backup on Old Middleburg Road as parents lined up waiting to pick up their children.
Vera Dudley, who was picking up her grandson, said she was relieved to learn no one was hurt.
"It’s really scary. Really scary because we don’t want anything to happen (to) nobody's kid at all," Dudley said. "I ... got up here and saw all of the commotion going on. ... Thankful that nothing serious happened."