Hoax active shooter threat at Bismarck High School

An all clear has been given, and everyone is safe today after Bismarck Police and surrounding agencies responded to Bismarck High School for a hoax active shooter threat.

Around 9:45 am this morning Central Dakota Communications received a phone call from an individual claiming to be an active shooter. In the background, gunfire could be heard. Police immediately responded to the threat and began to search Bismarck High School for an active threat.

No active shooting was taking place while searching the school. During the search, numerous calls came into dispatch regarding hearing gunshots in the school, and that there was an active shooter.

A sweep of the school was continued, and to ensure the safety of students and staff a methodical process was used to get everyone to a safe area of the school with security. Upon getting everyone to safety, a room-to-room search was completed of the entire school, and an all clear was given.

Bismarck Police continue to investigate the origins of the call and are confident that this was a hoax. There was never an active threat on campus, nor were there shots fired. Other schools throughout the US received similar calls today to include Mandan, ND.

Bismarck Police take calls like these seriously and will respond to them as if they are real with the priority of keeping students and staff safe.

We want to commend the students and staff of Bismarck High for doing as they are taught in a situation like this, cooperating with instructions of the police, and being attentive to their surroundings. We also want to thank the surrounding law enforcement agencies, Bismarck Fire Department, and Metro Ambulance for their assistance.