A school bus carrying students from Spruce Creek High School in Port Orange Sept. 23 was searched and cleared after the Volusia Sheriff’s Office determined an alleged bomb threat to be unsubstantiated.
The bus driver overheard a bomb threat by a student on the bus, at about 4:15 p.m. during the afternoon drop-off route and alerted law enforcement, according to Danielle Johnson, a spokesperson with Volusia County Schools. Police told the bus driver to pull over immediately.
While parked in a Walgreens lot near the intersection of Taylor Road and Williamson Boulevard, students were evacuated and searched by VSO deputies and K9. After deputies determined there was no safety threat, the bus continued on its route just before 6 p.m. to drop off any students not already picked up by parents, Johnson said.
The Port Orange Police Department detoured traffic away from the scene and posted a traffic alert to its Facebook page around 5 p.m. Local roads were reopened about an hour later.
Volusia County Schools notified parents of the incident as it was happening.
The Port Orange Police Department continues to investigate the threat’s origin, according to Johnson, who said any disciplinary action would be handled by the department.
The Port Orange Police Department did not immediately return calls for comment.
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Police search and clear Port Orange school bus after bomb threat made on board
Reporting by Colleen Michele Jones, Daytona Beach News-Journal / The Daytona Beach News-Journal
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