Pierce College was evacuated and shut down this morning after the school received a threat on social media that someone with a gun might come to campus, a sheriff’s deputy said today.
School officials made the decision to evacuate the campus and shut down classes for the rest of the day after a threat was received by the school via social media, sheriff’s Deputy Tony Moore said.
In the confusion that followed the school shutdown, reports surfaced that a gunman had been seen on campus, but Moore said those reports were untrue.
The shutdown and evacuation of the campus in the 6200 block of Winnetka Avenue began about 8 a.m., sheriff’s department officials said.
According to the school’s Facebook page, sheriff’s personnel were making a thorough search of the campus and the shutdown was expected to last all day. No one at the school or at the Board of Trustees could be reached for comment.
A Pierce College student wrote on Twitter that some midterm exams were scheduled for today.
Pierce College, a two-year institution, is part of the nine-campus Los Angeles Community College District.
It serves more than 21,000 students, according to the school. The campus, opened in 1947, covers about 426 acres in the western San Fernando Valley.
