Replica Grenade Found on Bus Forces Sandburg Evacuation

Updated at 4:45 p.m., 5:15 p.m. and 5:45 p.m. Friday

A replica grenade found on a bus in the Carl Sandburg High School parking lot Friday afternoon was determined by authorities not to be a threat.

A student discovered a replica grenade rolling on a bus floor and gave it to the bus driver, according to an official release by the Orland Park Police Department. Police were then called in around 3:11 p.m. Friday, and the building was immediately evacuated.

READ: Students Tweet Through Sandburg Grenade Scare

Orland Park police personnel were seen directing hundreds of students across LaGrange Road to the Southmoor Commons around 3:30 p.m. The bus area on the west side of the school was cordoned off, and with help from the Cook County Sheriff's Police Bomb Squad, authorities determined the grenade to be a replica and inert, according to the release.

All school buses were checked and determined to be safe. Students were directed back to the school grounds, and bus routes resumed around 4 p.m.

"There is nothing to lead us to believe anything else is out of the ordinary," Orland Park Police Commander John Keating said Friday around 5:45 p.m. "Our utmost concern is to make sure students and staff are safe and that's why we had such a large police response." 

No bomb threat was made verbally or in writing to the school, students, staff or police, according to the release. The high school was not on lockdown, and students were allowed to leave through the east doors if their parents came to pick them up.

The school will be searched by bomb sniffing dogs as a precaution, and police are continuing to investigate where the replica grenade came from, the release stated. The replica grenade itself had the outer shell of a working grenade, but the inner mechanisms that produce an explosion were taken out, Keating said. 

No injuries were reported during the incident.

"We appreciate the quick response of the student, bus driver, school staff and local law enforcement to assure the safety of students," Consolidated High School District 230 said in an alert to parents.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Join Patch! Create a free user account and join the discussion about the future of the area. You'll be subscribed to the free daily newsletter and breaking news alerts.

Orland Park / Palos / Tinley Park

Like Orland Park Patch, Palos Patch and Tinley Park Patch on Facebook.