UPDATE: Escaped Prisoner Prompts Barnegat, Waretown, LBI School Lockdowns

BARNEGAT, NJ -- (UPDATE, 1 p.m.) Schools in Barnegat, Waretown and Long Beach Island have ordered shelter-in-place lockdowns as authorities continue to search for an escaped prisoner from Bayside State Prison, according to Nixle alerts and scanner reports.

Arthur Buckel, who escaped from Bayside State Prison on Tuesday morning, has been tracked to Barnegat, according to a scanner report posted by Jersey Shore Scanner News on its Facebook page.

The post says he stole a vehicle in Atlantic County and the vehicle was found at the CVS on West Bay Avenue Wednesday morning. "Multiple" K9 units are searching for the prisoner, according to the post.

Buckel is described as a white male, 5-foot-9 and weighing about 180 pounds.

Barnegat Township's schools are in a shelter-in-place lockdown and residents have been warned to lock their doors until further notice.

The Barnegat Township Police Department posted images of the suspect at the CVS/Pharmacy on West Bay Avenue Wednesday morning (see photo).

Schools on Long Beach Island also are on a shelter-in-place due to the search for Buckel, according to an alert issued by Surf City police. Waretown Elementary School and Fredric A. Priff School also are on shelter-in-place lockdowns as of shortly before 1 p.m., according to a Nixle alert.

A phone call seeking the status of Southern Regional High School and Middle School in Stafford was not immediately returned.

A Nixle alert issued at 11:30 a.m. warned Barnegat residents to lock up and followed an alert that said all Barnegat Township schools are on lockdown as of 11:15 a.m.

According to parents, the lockdown at the township's schools is a shelter-in-place issued because law enforcement is searching for an escaped prisoner in the woods near West Bay Avenue and Barnegat Boulevard.

The alerts followed one issued at 11 a.m. telling motorists to avoid West Bay Avenue due to police activity in the area: "stay away from this area!!!"

West Bay Avenue, also known as County Route 554, runs between Route 9 and Route 72 and is the main east-west road through the township.

No further information was immediately available.

This is a breaking news story and will be updated as more information becomes available.