AMELIA, Ohio – Amelia Elementary School was placed on lockdown Friday afternoon after someone called the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline claiming they planned to commit suicide and set off bombs in the school’s classrooms.

The Clermont County Sheriff’s Office said its communications center received a call shortly after 1 p.m. Friday from a Lifeline crisis counselor who reported that a man at Amelia Elementary School had threatened that “everyone in the house was going to die.”

According to the sheriff’s office, the caller said, “I’m parked in front of Amelia Elementary School,” “I’m about to kill myself,” and “I’ve placed explosives in the classrooms at the school. It’s scheduled to go off in 45 minutes.”

Within 10 minutes, officers arrived at the school and began clearing the parking lots and surrounding areas. Officers also checked the interior of the school and found no suspected or visible explosives. A Miami Township Police sniffer dog was requested and cleared both the school and the parking lot.

Friday was the first day for half of the enrolled students at Amelia Elementary School. The school was locked down until everything was cleared shortly before the school day ended at 2:15 p.m. Classes ended at the normal time and bus service was not affected, officials said.

The sheriff’s office said investigators are trying to trace the origin of the original message to the suicide hotline and find those responsible for the threat. Their investigation is ongoing.

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