LUZERNE COUNTY, Pa. — Several school districts in Lackawanna, Luzerne, and Wyoming Counties dismissed students Friday after receiving threats.
Newswatch 16 has confirmed that at least nine school districts received some sort of threat, but there are likely many others.
The threats came in Friday morning.
Along with Wyoming Area, Lake-Lehman, Dallas, Wilkes-Barre Area, Northwest, Nanticoke, and Crestwood Area School Districts all evacuated their schools.
Several of the districts sent students to alternate locations off school property before parents were able to pick them up.
Kimberly Gustitus of Exeter has two kids who go to Wyoming Area, and she's glad her kids were sent home.
"After the first one, you're a little worried. Now, it's the second one, and I'm like, 'Oh, my gosh, this is ridiculous already,'" said Gustitus. "You can't take the risk because you never know. I think it's just someone, somewhere, doing this to cause mass confusion."
Scranton and Tunkhannock Area School Districts did not dismiss students after determining with law enforcement that the threats were not credible.
In a Facebook post on the Scranton School District's page said:
“The police and FBI are involved and confident that the threats circulating the school districts in our area are a hoax.”
"It's sad that the kids have to go through that," said Scranton resident Mary Coleman. "My daughter is only in fifth grade, and she just got there. It's scary."
Coleman believes the school district's decision was right.
"I do trust them to know that they're going to have the best interest for my kid, so whatever they feel will work."
School officials and law enforcement say it's important to investigate these threats, whether they're a hoax or not, no matter the inconvenience it causes.
Last month, a man from Peru was charged after he allegedly made more than 150 threats to schools and health care facilities in our area.
