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Police: No evidence of gunfire at Florida school

Posted at 7:43 AM, Oct 19, 2017
and last updated 2017-10-19 09:21:54-04

A High School in Lakeland, Florida was placed on lockdown after the sound of a vehicle backfiring was mistaken for the sound of gunshots early Thursday morning.

Before 7 a.m. a call was placed reporting shots fired near Lake Gibson High School in Lakeland. 

Polk County deputies responded to the school where they immediately placed it on lockdown. Deputies cleared the scene room by room as they investigated the reports.

No victims and no evidence of a shooter were discovered.

Several witnesses confirmed that a vehicle at the school backfired, which caused a panic, deputies say.

"We are grateful that this incident was not what it initially seemed to be. But what we did see this morning, was a spectacular response, and great cooperation between law enforcement, the school faculty and students, and the Polk County School Board," said Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd.

Deputies are still on scene as things return to normal.

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