WISCONSIN (WTAQ-WRN) — School districts and police departments across Wisconsin had to deal with a series of “swatting” calls on Wednesday.
One caller stated that there was an active shooter, and stuck around long enough to answer some questions. Chippewa Falls patrol sergeant Sheridan Pabst says the caller was very vague about details.
“There was a lot of red flags during the call to our dispatch center,” said Pabst. “That kind of indicated it was a false call.”
Chippewa Falls schools are currently on spring break, so there was no danger and no actual shooter.
However, Sergeant Pabst says they have to respond as if it’s real.
“We still treat it as a real incident until it’s proven otherwise, we want to be as cautious as we can,” said Pabst. “Because at one time that you treated as a false incident that could very well be true.”
Other swatting calls were sent to schools in Rice Lake, Superior, Wausau, and Spooner, as well as districts in Minnesota and Iowa.
