Sisk: ‘No credible threat’ at Elkmont

Published 6:30 am Friday, March 2, 2018

Limestone County School Superintendent Dr. Tom Sisk confirmed a verbal altercation that took place between two students at Elkmont High School on Wednesday did not involve a gun threat.

He went on to say, “There is no credible threat. Period.”

The altercation came to light Thursday morning after Elkmont High School posted an official message on their Facebook page addressing a separate post the school said was “filled with many false statements” and “causing a lot of panic.”

The school acknowledged two students had a verbal altercation. They said the student’s parents, the central office and the Limestone County Sheriff’s Office were notified “out of abundance of caution.” “There is no reason to be fearful to attend school at Elkmont High School today,” the post ended.

Several parents vowed to keep students at home from school, while others called for a town meeting.

According to Elkmont principal Bill Tribble, the school is investigating the matter and will continue to interview students in the days to come. He confirmed students who missed school Thursday would not be counted absent.

He added the school had not officially notified parents of the situation because “we don’t know if we have an incident. When we have all the facts, we will address the parents.”

However, Sisk said Limestone County Schools sent an email to parents Thursday morning informing them of the incident.

Tribble went on to address claims made by commenters on the school’s Thursday morning Facebook post. Those claims included a possible gun threat related to the altercation and a student recently bringing a gun on campus.

“There has been no weapon on our campus that we are aware of,” Tribble said.

Limestone County Sheriff’s Office Spokesperson Stephen Young confirmed LCSO was made aware of a Facebook post in which a user claimed they knew of a student possibly bringing a gun to Elkmont High School. However, officials determined the incident to be unfounded and of the “he said, she said” variety.

“We did investigate it but could not track anything down that matched up with what was being said,” Young said.

Tribble said the school is taking every precaution to ensure the safety of his students.