Flemington Gunman Threat Hoax; Prompt Response from Police, School District

by John Lipez

FLEMINGTON – Law enforcement officials from multiple agencies were out in full force along the Flemington-Lock Haven boundary Tuesday morning for what turned out to be a false report.

The incident began after someone called 911 in Lycoming County and said there was an armed man at a doctor’s office in Flemington. After a thorough search of the area police determined the report was a hoax and authorities were later able to track down the source of the call to Jersey Shore and said an arrest would be made.

Meanwhile the Keystone Central School District, made aware of the incident, responded through site postings and phone calls to parents.

The first posted report came from Superintendent Kelly Hastings at 8:50 a.m:

The District was made aware of an incident that occurred in Flemington Borough involving an individual armed with a gun who is on foot. THERE HAS BEEN NO THREAT MADE TO ANY OF OUR SCHOOLS. As a precautionary measure, all district buildings have been alerted and are being extra vigilant this morning, and all student activities are confined to the interior of the buildings.

Once it was determined no gunman existed, Hasting’s office provided an update at 11:15 a.m.

Information from law enforcement has confirmed that the incident reported this morning involving an individual with a firearm has been resolved and, as reported earlier, no threats were made to the district or to any of our schools.  The district has returned to normal operations, and extends our thanks to parents and the community for your trust and support.

In the interim the district had informed parents by phone recording at 9:01 a.m. of the reported incident; at 11:30 a.m. parents received a phone call with the same information listed on the district’s homepage, stating the issue had been resolved.