Schools
School Shooting Threat Triggers Panic At San Fernando Valley School
Parents lined up to pick up their children and some students scaled a fence to get off campus after word of a social media threat spread.
WOODLAND HILLS, CA — A social media post that appeared to threaten a school shooting at Taft High School in Woodland Hills triggered a panic Tuesday, with students reportedly scaling fences to escape and parents lining up to get their kids out of school.
Authorities are investigating whether a series of threats posted to Instagram predicting a shooting Taft High School in Woodland Hills are credible.
KTLA 5 displayed some social media posts warning of a possible shooting at the school Tuesday.
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The first included the message, "School is going to get shot today around 4th period stay tuned."
It was followed by an image of a gun resting on a person's lap with a "my school" emoji superimposed above it.
“I saw “I’m going to shoot up the school during fourth period’ and I went to the next [Instagram] story and it was him with a gun on his lap,” student Dhyanesh Dhileepkumar told KTLA. “I was in a state of panic…everyone was in a state of panic.”
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Officers were sent to the campus in the 5400 block of Winnetka Avenue at about 9 a.m. on a threat investigation, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.
The school was not placed on lockdown, police said. A line of parents formed outside the campus, according to report from the scene.
"We take the safety and security of our students and our campus very seriously. All statements that raise concerns about the safety of our campus are immediately and thoroughly investigated to ensure the safety of our students," The Los Angeles Unified School District announced. "The district will continue to evaluate their safety procedures to ensure the safety of the school community."
Calls and emails to the Los Angeles School Police Department were not immediately returned.
Some students reportedly climbed over fences to get off the campus after being told by officers that it was safer for them to remain on the campus.
The investigation was being conducted by the LAPD and school police officers.
City News Service contributed to this report.
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