CLAYTON COUNTY, Ga. — Mt. Zion High School in Morrow was on lockdown after reports of a gun on campus Wednesday morning.
The security scare came after a temporary power outage from the storm and a series of attempts by students to close the school, police said.
After storms whipped through the area knocking down trees and power lines, officials said students tried to trick the media into believing school was dismissed.
Then officers said a student reported seeing someone with a gun, which was a prank. That led to a huge police presence, in the air and on the ground.
Parents rushed to pick up their kids, but police wouldn’t allow it.
“They said we can not go in there and if we keep on making a scene they're gonna lock us up,” said Tracey Simpson.
Furious parents started chanting: "We want our kids we want our kids! We want our kids!"
“We can not manage tons of parents coming to pick up children as we're handling other crises,” said Chief Clarence Cox of Clayton County schools.
Channel 2’s Tom Jones found one parent who understood the pressure police were under.
Vincent Robinson also felt for the students who were missing their tests because of a prank.
“It's just concerning that some kids don't take education as, they take it very lightly and it's a joke to them," said Robinson.
Parents say the school could have handled this better, but the school says it kept everyone safe and this event went well.
Police charged one student with disrupting operation at a public school.
Power was restored about 11:15 a.m. and classes proceeded as normal.
A student has been arrested for disrupting Mt Zion high by claiming there was gun on campus. #wsbtv
— Tom Jones (@TomJonesWSB) April 30, 2014WSBTV
