Threat forces lockdown during dismissal at North Garner Middle School

Parents at North Garner Middle School were left waiting in the middle of dismissal Friday as a threat sent the Garner campus into lockdown, forcing students already trying to get home into the school’s emergency procedures.

Garner police received a call at 3:39 p.m. from an unknown person making the threat, and the school immediately went into Code Red, according to the Wake County Public School System. Students who were still on campus were brought into the auditorium while police responded and multiple officers moved in to secure the school grounds.

The lockdown hit during one of the most chaotic parts of the day, when students are shifting from classes to buses, parent pick-up and after-school plans. Police advised the school at 3:48 p.m. that it was safe to move to Code Yellow so staff could begin a supervised dismissal, a step that signaled the campus had not returned to normal but could start moving students out in an organized way.

Law enforcement later said at about 4:20 p.m. that it was safe to lift the Code Yellow lockdown. The school told families at 4:53 p.m. that it had returned to Code Green and was operating normally. That left families in limbo for about 74 minutes from the initial threat call to the all-clear update.

The threat was ultimately determined to be unverified. In its message to families, the school said counselors would be available Monday, May 18, for any student who needed support after the disruption. WRAL reported that Sky 5 saw several officers patrolling the grounds around 4 p.m. with long-range weapons and tactical gear, a sign of how seriously authorities treated the call. By 5 p.m., the school was back under Code Green and officers were escorting students to buses.

Wake County Public School System says its security department works with school staff, local law enforcement and public health and safety leaders to protect students. The district also lists lockdowns and school threats among its safety resources and provides an anonymous tip line at 919-856-1911 for reporting concerns.

The episode came amid continuing concern over school threats in Wake County and across the Triangle. ABC11 reported in 2023 that the FBI confirmed nearly 6,000 school-related threats in 2022, a 60% increase from 2021, and that Wake County schools said each campus holds at least one Code Red drill every year with law enforcement and emergency responders.