No weapons found during lockdown of South Sumter Middle School

WEBSTER, Fla. — After hours of waiting for a lockdown to end after a student at South Sumter Middle School reported seeing another student with a gun, parents had to wait in long lines to pick up their children.

Sumter County law enforcement said they sent SWAT teams to the school on Thursday, and students were searched.

Authorities said they searched a group of students accused of having the weapon, but no gun was found.

Authorities then searched every locker, backpack and the entire school, but nothing turned up.

Police said they believe the girl who reported the gun was mistaken, but they still said she did the right thing in alerting authorities.

“We can't take chances, and in this case, we turned over all rocks to make sure there were no weapons on campus,” said Lt. Bobby Caruthers.

The sheriff's office said the investigation is not over, and there will be added law enforcement at the school on Friday.

WFTV