by Nancy McGill, The Milford Times

    A message reading, "There is a bomb in the school. You are all going to die. In the lunchroom," was written on a boys' bathroom stall at Milford High School March 14, forcing school officials to lockdown the school at 2:50 p.m.
     A lockdown means everybody stays in their classrooms and all exterior doors are locked so no one can enter the school.
     At 3:05 p.m., the building was evacuated. Students were instructed to leave the school without taking their backpacks.
     "They just said, 'Don't take anything, just get out,'" a seventh grade student said.
     Students that take the bus walked over to the elementary school and boarded buses there. As of March 19, Milford Police and school administration said the matter remains "under investigation."
     "We are working with the police department. They're taking the lead on it," High School Principal T.J. Meyer said.
     "As always, when somebody leaves notes like this, they are taken seriously," Chief of Police Forrest Siebken, said.
     Even if the note was a joke, Siebken said threats are disruptive to people.
     "It puts fear in people's lives," he said.
     When the person or persons responsible for the bomb threat are found, they may face a number of felony charges, Siebken said, using the terroristic threat charge as an example.
     It was impossible to inform parents of the incident because it happened so fast and close to the time school was out for the day, Superintendent Kevin Wingard said at about 6 p.m. that day in front of the high school.
     "Usually, students are sent to a nearby church until a decision is made," Wingard said.
     Notes were sent home the next day with all students in the district, which included Pleasant Dale.
     Milford Police and Seward County Deputies were first on the scene. Milford Volunteer Fire Department was on standby at the fire station. The Nebraska State Patrol K-9 unit was called in. Siebken said law enforcement agencies broke into teams and swept the building, looking for anything unusual. They also made sure nobody was in the school.
     "It took quite a bit of time to go through the building. You can't rush the dog or the state patrol," Siebken said.
     The state patrol's K-9 unit left at 6:05 p.m. At that time, Wingard said school would resume the next morning. Students were not allowed in before 8 a.m. and they were instructed to use only one set of front doors because all other doors were locked.
     Milford Police conducted metal checks of students and their backpacks with wands. Siebken said the police were finished by 8:30 a.m.
     "The process went really well for what we were doing through one door," he said.
     Milford Public Schools has a crisis response team in place for incidents such as bomb threats. Team members receive specialized training for emergencies of all kinds. For a lockdown, a "code red" is announced. In the case of a bomb threat, staff checks to see what students were absent at the time of the threat and all students are accounted for. Any rumors concerning the threat are reported to school administration.