This story was most recently updated at 11:35 a.m.
The lockdown at San Marcos High School was lifted after law enforcement determined the report of a subject with a gun in a nearby parking lot was a false alarm, according to the Santa Barbara Sheriff’s Department and Santa Barbara Unified School District.
Around 10 a.m., a student reported seeing a man with a gun in a campus parking lot, near the roundabout, Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department spokeswoman Kelly Hoover said.
Santa Barbara County sheriff’s deputies responded to investigate and set up a perimeter, and the campus was placed on lockdown.
Hoover said around 11:15 a.m. that the response was demobilizing and the report was related to a man whose car broke down in the area and was seen holding a radiator hose. The suspect had been described as a white male in a gray suit.
School district spokeswoman Lauren Bianchi Klemann confirmed the lockdown was lifted around 11:20 a.m. and said the subject had been identified and determined not to be a threat. The student who reported the incident identified the subject with law enforcement, she said.
“There was no weapon, but we really appreciate the student who spoke up,” she said. Students are being briefed and counseling teams are being assembled on the campus following the lockdown, she said.
“We will release students upon parent arrival if needed but school will be in session,” Bianchi Klemann said.
She said the district, school administration, teachers and law enforcement were in constant communication and the response went smoothly, following their lockdown protocols.
During the response, law enforcement and ambulances staged in the shopping center near the 4750 Hollister Ave. campus.
The southbound Highway 101 offramp at Turnpike Road was closed, as was Hollister Avenue between Turnpike Road and Puente Drive near the campus.
Personnel from the Sheriff’s Department, California Highway Patrol, and local police departments were stationed around the campus, and several officers were carrying rifles. A helicopter also circled overhead.
There were no reports of shots fired or any casualties, and authorities asked parents to avoid the area during the lockdown while deputies investigated.
Noozhawk reporter Brooke Holland reported from the scene.
— Noozhawk managing editor Giana Magnoli can be reached at gmagnoli@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
