Springfield city officials and police said they are working with the Dayton office of the FBI “to thoroughly investigate and trace the origin of these threats.”
Here is a list of the affected sites and the dates threats were received.
Monday, Sept. 16
The Springfield region continued to be hit by threats of violence that are affecting local schools and others.
• The Springfield City School District evacuated both Simon Kenton and Kenwood Elementary schools Monday morning based on information received from the Springfield Police Division.
The district enacted a controlled release to dismiss students to their parents, and a long line of people formed at Springfield High School to pick up their children.
• Tecumseh Local Schools was targeted Monday by a threatening social media post that mentioned the district.
Superintendent Paula Crew said around 3:15 p.m. Monday a screenshot was shared that contained a threat that included the name of the district. She said it was actually the same post that was sent out about two weeks ago at Buckeye Local Schools, but the district name was changed to Tecumseh.
A Tecumseh Local student was arrested later Monday evening and was charged with making terroristic threats.
Crew sent out a messages to families around 5 p.m. Monday to inform them about the post, and another around 10 p.m. giving an update about the person who made the threat being in custody.
Sunday, Sept. 15
• Clark State College, based in Springfield, announced on Sunday that they would be closing all of its campuses and move to remote classes Monday through Friday as a result of two email threats of a potential bombing and shooting from the weekend.
All Clark State classes will be conducted virtually this week, and employees should work from home, according to the college. All activities are cancelled.
“We remain dedicated to providing strong academic programs and will work to ensure minimal disruption to our educational environment, but we will always prioritize the safety and wellness of our students, employees and community,” the university said.
• Wittenberg University canceled all activities, events and athletics contests Sunday due to a threat of a potential shooting on campus from an email sent Saturday.
The threat involved a bomb threat utilizing a red Honda Civic. the entire campus was cleared of any suspicious vehicle and no threats were found.
Later Sunday. Wittenberg announced that all classes would be remote on Monday. Faculty and staff were also expected to work remotely, except for essential employees. All events, athletics, and activities were canceled as well.
University officials said all academic facilities will be locked on Monday, and Wittenberg will the same adjusted protocol to dining as it did Sunday.
Saturday, Sept. 14
Credit: Bill Lackey
Credit: Bill Lackey
• Springfield Regional Medical Center received an alleged bomb threat at 6:07 a.m.
“Mercy Health immediately put the hospital on lockdown while local authorities conducted a thorough search of the facility, in conjunction with our onsite security team,” Mercy Health officials said. “Nothing was found within or outside the hospital and the threat was determined to be not credible. The hospital continued to operate during this time.”
• Kettering Health Springfield medical center was also under a brief lockdown due to a bomb threat Saturday morning.
They said they were notified of the threat around 6:50 a.m., and the lockdown lasted for about a half an hour.
Friday, Sept. 13
An email sent at 7:21 a.m. “targeted several City Commissioners and a city employee.”
• The Bureau of Motor Vehicles and the Ohio License Bureau Southside were evacuated.
A second email at 7:45 a.m. targeted several schools
• The Springfield City School District closed Roosevelt Middle School and evacuated Perrin Woods and Snowhill Elementary schools Friday morning after the city received two bomb threats via email,
Roosevelt Middle School also closed before the beginning of the school day.
Perrin Woods and Snowhill Elementary students were evacuated from their buildings to a different district location.
• Cliff Park High School, a charter school outside the Springfield district, was also evacuated.
Thursday, Sept. 12
On Thursday, several city, county and school buildings around Springfield were closed because of a bomb threat to multiple facilities throughout the city.
• This included City Hall, the Bureau of Motor Vehicles, the Springfield Driver’s Exam Station, Ohio License Bureau on the south side, Springfield Academy of Excellence and Fulton Elementary School. They were all cleared using explosive-detecting canines.
Springfield Mayor Rob Rue said everyone who was in the City Hall building was moved out. The building was closed all day Thursday.
• All Clark County buildings were also closed to the public Thursday, “out of an abundance of caution.” This included all commission departments, the Department of Job and Family Services, the Common Pleas Court, the Board of Elections and the A.B. Graham Building.
Rue would not comment on the precise language of the threat but said it came from someone claiming to be from Springfield, and mentioned frustration with the city related to Haitian immigration issues.
The Springfield school district evacuated students from Fulton. Parents of students were told to pick up their children from Springfield High School, where they had been taken.