Austin High School declared safe after possible 'swatting incident' on Wednesday

Austin Independent School District police officers are investigating a possible swatting incident at Austin High School after responding to a 911 call and determining the campus was safe Wednesday morning.

Just before 10 a.m., the district announced that AISD police “responded to a 911 call reportedly originating from Austin High School.”

“Campus is secured, please do not come to campus. During the security check, students and staff will remain in place and no one will be allowed to enter or exit the building,” the district tweeted.

Within 10 minutes, the district released an update saying the Austin High School campus was safe.

“Officers are searching the building. At this time, we believe the call was a swatting incident, a false report of an emergency intended to trigger an emergency. The campus remains secure,” the district said.

Shortly thereafter, the district released another update saying that “security measures” were being lifted: “Officers have completed the search of the campus and determined that Austin HS is safe. Security measures have been lifted and the campus is returning to normal operations.”

The latest swatting incident in Central Texas

This possible swatting incident occurred just one day after San Marcos High School was placed on lockdown following reports of a possible attack at the school.

San Marcos police responded to a 911 call Tuesday afternoon about a possible active shooter on school grounds.

“A single caller reported seeing a man with a gun in the hallway,” the department said in a Facebook post.

Officers searched hallways and classrooms and ultimately concluded that “based on the facts currently known, there was no credible threat.”

The department continues to investigate the source of the report.

Local authorities report that there have been dozens of threats against schools in the area in recent weeks.

According to KVUE, a sixth student in Hays Consolidated ISD was arrested for making threats.

Austin ISD Police Chief Wayne Sneed told the network that there have been 30 threats against schools in Austin.

Travis County District Attorney José Garza reported that there are currently over 30 cases pending related to the threats. Garza said the magnitude of the recent threats is alarming.

“Firearms are simply too accessible to young people and people who possess them illegally,” Garza said, pointing out that only two cases involved adults.

“As long as that is the case, we must take these cases incredibly seriously,” he added.