A bomb threat was called into the high school office Wednesday, March 4 at 10:42 a.m., and all Bexley Schools entered a reverse evacuation and stay-put, meaning no one was permitted to enter or exit the classrooms or school buildings.
The call alleged a vehicle containing a detonation device was on Cassingham Road, where the high school, middle school and Cassingham Elementary are located, Bexley police Chief Gary Lewis told the Columbus Dispatch.
Soon after the threat was issued, Bexley police arrived at the high school, including Lewis and a bomb detection canine.
The police performed a search of the inside and outside of the school buildings, though the threat was not believed to be credible, Superintendent Jason Fine and Director of Facilities Harley Williams wrote in an email that afternoon.
“As a precaution, we proceeded with a sweep inside and around the outside perimeters of our buildings,” the email said. “Once those sweeps were completed, we were able to lift the orders for a stay-put and reverse evacuation.”
Students and staff received an email lifting the stay-put at 11:54 a.m. Wednesday, but the reverse evacuation remained in effect.
Lewis said he believes the threat the high school received was related to additional “swatting” or “hoax” threats in Central Ohio.
Gahanna Lincoln High School, Worthington Kilbourne, Thomas Worthington and schools in Toledo, Cincinnati and Cleveland also received threats yesterday, according to the Dispatch, but it is unclear if the threats across the state are related.
Several Central Ohio districts did not receive threats, including Whitehall, Westerville, Olentangy, Pickerington and Upper Arlington, NBC4 reported.
Bexley police will work with other law enforcement and the FBI in monitoring threats, Lewis said.
The FBI issued a statement saying it is addressing the situation and has not yet identified any credible threats.
“The FBI is aware of a number of hoax threats in Central and Southern Ohio,” the statement read. “While we have no information to indicate a credible threat, we are currently working with our local, state and federal law enforcement partners to gather, share and act upon threat information.”
There were no classes at the high school Wednesday, but juniors and seniors were in the building to take the SAT and STAMP Language Proficiency Test.
The Senior Seminar took place as scheduled from 12 p.m. to 3:15 p.m. after the stay-put was lifted.
In the email that afternoon, Fine and Williams encouraged students to reach out to a teacher, school counselor or principal if in need of support.
Published and digitized March 2026.
