Bomb threat causes evacuation of Xinmin Secondary School

SINGAPORE: A bomb threat on Thursday morning (Aug 13) at Xinmin Secondary School in Hougang caused the students and staff of the school to be evacuated.

Fortunately, the Singapore Police Force found no suspicious items or explosive devices after carrying out a thorough search of the school’s premises together with school personnel, and classes resumed that morning once the area was declared safe by the authorities.

The threat, now determined to be a hoax, is under investigation.

School principal Tan Soon Hui was quoted in a CNA report as saying that the authorities were contacted as soon as the school learned of the threat.

“All students and staff were evacuated to the school’s designated assembly area in a swift and orderly manner,” he said, adding, “The safety and well-being of all students and staff remain the school’s utmost priority. The school will continue to support the well-being of our students and staff and ensure that appropriate measures are in place to respond to emergencies.”

The incident

The police told the media that they were alerted regarding “a potential bomb threat” at 8:20 a.m on Aug 13, and evacuation procedures began a few minutes later, with teachers and school personnel bringing the students to assigned safety areas.

Shortly afterwards, the parents of the students received a message regarding the incident on the Parents Gateway mobile app.

Later that morning, the search for the bomb had concluded, and all the students and staff of Xinmin Secondary School were safe and accounted for, and the school was able to go back to its normal activities.

Media reports said that some police were still at the school past 11:00 a.m.

At present, the incident is being investigated by the police as a case of communicating false information of a harmful thing.

Individuals convicted of this offence could be jailed for a maximum of seven years, be made to pay a fine of as much as S$50,000, or both.

“The police take all security threats seriously and will not hesitate to take action against those who intentionally communicate false information on bomb threats,” SPF said in a statement. /TISG

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