Information From E-911 On Today’s Lake Central Incident
On September 8th, at approximately 9:50 AM, Lake County 911 received two emergency telephone calls reporting a possible shooter at Lake Central High School. The first call was from a person that believed there was a shooter in a third-floor bathroom of the school. Further questioning and clarification revealed the caller heard sounds of a gun being “reloaded” and saw something “black” in the person’s hand as they walked past the bathroom stall.
A second 911 call arrived during the first call from a woman who received a text message from her child saying that there was a “shooter” on the third floor of the high school. The woman attempted to text her child back to get more information but received no reply.
Lake County 911 dispatchers took immediate action, dispatched the St John Police Department, and provided all of the information available. While dispatchers stayed on the line with the first caller, a police officer located the caller and is heard on the 911 recording gathering additional information.
Within 5 minutes of the original call, the officer on scene reported via police radio that no shots were known to be fired and no gun was immediately located. At that time, the St John Police Department requested additional law enforcement resources, including SWAT, to the scene to assist with securing the safety of the facility.
Lake County 911 commended both callers for remaining calm and promptly answering the questions which led to a swift and thorough response from local law enforcement and partner agencies.
Lake County 911’s professional telecommunicators are trained for “Active Assailant” scenarios which includes active shooters, or potential active shooters. In these situations, caller questions are abbreviated, and focus is kept on keeping the caller safe while information is provided as quickly as possible to law enforcement to ensure an immediate response with the most information possible.
