HOUSTON — Several Texas college and university campuses reported receiving hoax 911 calls Thursday, claiming there was an active shooter situation.
As of 11:30 a.m., none of the Houston-area campuses have reported receiving calls including the University of Houston, Texas Southern University, and Rice University.
However, in College Station, the Texas A&M University Police Department reported a hoax call of an active shooter incident at the Health Science Center.
"The report of an active shooter at the Health Science Center is FALSE. There is no threat to campus. The same caller reported an active shooter at other universities today which was also false," police tweeted just after 11:30 a.m.
Here is a list of the other hoax calls reported at Texas colleges and universities:
- Galen College of Nursing in San Antonio
- Del Mar College in Corpus Christi
- Collin College in Plano
- Tyler Junior College in Tyler
- Texas Wesleyan in Fort Worth
- Baylor University in Waco
Investigators have not said if the hoax calls are connected.
The FBI Houston Field Office said its department was collaborating with law enforcement partners to investigate where the calls were coming from.
"These threats put innocent people at risk and cause significant fear in the community," the department said. "We have no information to indicate a specific and credible threat at this time, but we continue to collaborate with our law enforcement partners and are actively investigating these dangerous and criminal threats. Multiple agencies are working to gather and share information and respond to these incidents with a shared goal of keeping the public safe. We urge the public to remain vigilant and report all suspicious activity and/or individuals to law enforcement immediately."
Collin College Plano
According to WFAA, KHOU 11’s sister station in Dallas, Plano police said a hoax call at Colling College Plano led to an evacuation of buildings on campus. Police said the call came to their 911 center at 9:45 a.m.
Plano police originally tweeted that there was a possible active shooter at the campus, then updated that there were no injuries reported.
Galen College of Nursing School
According to KENS, KHOU 11's sister station in San Antonio, just after 10 a.m., San Antonio police responded to the Galen College of Nursing School in the Medical Center area for a report of an active shooter.
Police searched the building and found no signs of any shooting, later saying that the evacuation appeared to be the result of a hoax call.
Texas Wesleyan
Texas Wesleyan University issued a shelter-in-place after receiving a call of a threat on campus. Just after 10 a.m., the university reported that the all-clear was given by Fort Worth police.
"Earlier this morning, an Emergency Alert was sent out to the TXWES community to shelter-in-place. FWPD quickly responded to campus and started clearing buildings and found no evidence of an emergency. Further investigation found the call was placed by a scam number.
"There was never an actual threat to campus. At that time, the shelter-in-place was lifted after the all-clear was given by FWPD. We want to commend our safety and security team for taking swift action in notifying the TXWES community and responding in a timely manner."
Lamar Institute of Technology
According to KBMT, KHOU 11's sister station in Beaumont, just before 10:20 a.m. Beaumont police received notice via Lamar Police and the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office that a person with an AR-15 style rifle was going into the IT department at the Lamar Institute of Technology.
A report of an active shooter at the Montagne Center also came in and officers swept the facility but found nothing.
The threats were deemed to be hoaxes according to the Beaumont Office of Emergency Management.
Del Mar College Heritage Campus
According to KIII, KHOU 11’s sister station in Corpus Christi, Del Mar College Heritage Campus issued a shelter-in-place warning for students and staff at 10:28 a.m. due to a call about an active shooter. Police cleared the campus and issued an "all-clear" at 10:47 a.m.
Tyler Junior College
According to KYTX, KHOU 11's sister station in Tyler, Tyler Junior College received a call of an active shooter call just before 11 a.m. and evacuated the West Campus and Pirtle Technology Building. A short time later, the all-clear was given.
No evidence of a shooting was found.