TOPSHAM

School officials and police say yet another threat reported at Mt. Ararat High School prompted students and staff to shelter in place Tuesday.

The matter has been resolved, and apparently stemmed from a text message between two students.

“We had a situation that is now resolved at the high school. A communication between two girls was taken as an indication of (a) potential problem,” School Administrative District 75 Superintendent Brad Smith stated on the district’s Facebook page. “A student reported to an administrator that there was a threat and to leave the school.”

As a result, the decision was made to shelter students “in place,” which limited their movement within the building while police attempted to locate the person who sent the original message. 

Smith said the student who received the original message acknowledged they misunderstood the message, “and things are back to normal.”

“There was no threat,” Smith stated.

According to Topsham Police Chief Chris Lewis, the student who sent the initial message had left the school campus at the time the threat was reported and wasn’t aware there was an issue. She is cooperating with police.

“I have reviewed the text with the Chief of Police, and there was nothing threatening in the texts between students,” Smith said. 

School will continue, he said.

Lewis said he was notified of the threat at approximately 11 a.m.

dmoore@timesrecord.com