Nationwide swatting email included Carbon County

On December 13, Carbon County School District No. 1 (CCSD1) received an email which school officials believe was a “swatting” email several school districts across the state and country also received.

Swatting is the act of prank calling emergency services in attempt to get them to arrive at a particular address. The threat was believed not to be credible.

CCSD1 Superintendent Mike Hamel confirmed in an interview the next day that the threat is still not believed to be credible.

Hamel was out of town on business that day and other members of his staff addressed the situation. He said until any such threat is determined not to be credible, they treat it as though it is credible.

“In the interim, we are going to do everything we can to protect the kids,” said Hamel.

The district evacuated every CCSD1 school building and then searched the buildings with law enforcement, he said.

The district notified the parents by posting the following message on social media and the school district website: “This message is to communicate that CCSD#1 received an email today that is believed to be a “swatting” email that several states across the country have received. We are working with the Rawlins Police Department in response to this threat. The message was received by other districts across Wyoming and is believed to not be a viable threat at this time.

“The safety and well-being of our students and staff remain our top priority. We take any potential threat seriously and have implemented heightened security measures as a precaution. Additionally, local authorities are continuing to monitor the situation closely. In an abundance of caution we searched every Carbon 1 School Building with law enforcement.

“As always, we encourage all members of the school and local community to remain vigilant and report any suspicious activity or information to the appropriate authorities.”

The superintendent said in the event of a situation like this, the students are evacuated to a “designated” area outside the buildings. “When it was all clear, we took the people back into the buildings.”

Hamel said this is the second such threat the district has received in three years. The previous one was “very similar.” It was also an email and a bomb threat and went to most or all the school districts in Wyoming, like the recent one this week.

Carbon County School District No. 2 (CCSD2) Superintendent Darrin Jennings said they did not receive any threatening emails that day.

“We worked with local law enforcement and campus administrators to be extra diligent in our schools,” said Jennings. “They made their presence ‘more visible’ and the principals walked in and out of the buildings. Law enforcement also made its presence known at the schools.”

CCSD2 is comprised of one school in Encampment, two in Saratoga, two in Hanna and one in Medicine Bow, he said.

“I had great support from District No. 1 yesterday,” he added.

He said if a threat was deemed credible, the district would work with local law enforcement and they have evacuation plans in place.

Said Jennings, “It sure is a crazy world we live in and a sad thing that schools are targeted for these types of threats.”