KEMAH, Texas — An empty suitcase left near an elementary school caused a two-hour scene Thursday.

Someone called 911 shortly before noon, reporting a suspicious black suitcase in the 700 block of Miller Avenue near Stewart Elementary, Lt. Rick McCollum of Kemah police said.

Allison Dean, a Kemah Fire Department spokeswoman, said a bomb squad from Pasadena used a water cannon to spray the bag, and the scene was cleared by 1:57 p.m.

At least two homes near the suitcase were evacuated, and streets near the school were closed.

Janice Scott, a Clear Creek school district spokeswoman, said the suitcase was found near the school’s bus loading area, and officials ordered schoolchildren to stay inside.

“All the children were moved away from the east side of the building to the west side,” Scott said.

McCollum said a witness reported that a man driving a white car stopped near the school, opened the vehicle’s trunk, removed the black suitcase with wheels and placed it next to the road.

Agents from the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force set up a command post, and bomb technicians found the bag empty, McCollum said.

“Educational activities continued,” Scott said. “We tried to keep it as normal of a day as we could. When I drove by the school, children were already on the playground.”

McCollum said it was possible someone stopped to retrieve something from the trunk, moved the suitcase out of the way and accidentally drove away without it.