Multiple Alaska school districts, including Anchorage, received an emailed bomb threat Tuesday, prompting some districts to take steps in response including evacuation.
Alaska State Troopers said Tuesday afternoon that the threat did not appear to be credible. Troopers are investigating the source of the threat with the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Anchorage field office, they said.
The threat “is broad in nature and lacks specific information” but is being taken seriously, according to a statement from the Anchorage School District.
Anchorage schools remained open Tuesday without a change to the schedule, district officials said. A spokesman directed all questions about the threats to law enforcement, citing the active investigation.
The Southeast Island School District in Thorne Bay, Annette Island School District in Metlakatla and Dillingham City School District also received the bomb threat, the districts wrote on social media. All three districts evacuated students and staff from the building, they said.
Officials at the Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District, the state’s second largest, did not receive the email, a spokeswoman said. The district is working with local law enforcement and monitoring the situation, she said.
According to a statement from the Alaska Department of Education and Early Development, a total of 12 school districts received an email “threatening violence in their schools.” The incident was reported to the Alaska Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, in addition to troopers and the FBI, the statement said.
The threat was “thoroughly investigated” and the department was monitoring the situation, according to the statement.