DeSoto County parents keep kids home after 3 swatting calls at school this week

ARCADIA, Fla. (WINK)—Several DeSoto County parents are keeping their kids home from school after West Elementary had three swatting calls this week.

Two of those calls were active shooter threats, while the other was a bomb threat. The incidents caused fear for parents and students.

Third-grader Michael Tucker said the threats didn't feel like practice.

"We had to do a drill, that wasn't really a drill," Tucker said.

When Kelly Longnecker picks up her boys, Michael and Gabriel, from school, they go home, play with their new puppy, ride bikes, and hang out with mom. But this week, they've gone home early three times.

"It's also, you know, interfering with their education," Longnecker said.

The school district said West Elementary School in DeSoto County has had three swatting calls this week.

"As a parent, your heart drops for everyone at the school, not just your kids," Longnecker said.

Michael, only in the third grade, said he understood what was happening and that he had a job to do.

"The red flag means that you feel unsafe, and then the green flag means that you feel safe," Tucker said. "And then when they said to show them, I went like red flag, because I don't get why they had it for so many days."

Longnecker said after the threats, she got calls from the district. Other parents got messages in the Parent Square app. When the threat happened on Thursday morning, she was there when the school went on lockdown.

"It was worrying me, you know, like, close the doors," Longnecker said. "You know, just listening to what they have to listen to is worrisome, you know, because you can't go in there."

When the lockdown was over, Gabriel said he knew his mom was already there to pick them up.

"Four kids in my school jumped on me and said, 'May I please go home with you' because I knew that they were scared," Gabriel Tucker said.

Longnecker said the thought of tomorrow weighs on her mind.

"It's hard for us to sleep knowing if they're going to be safe tomorrow, if there's another drill," Longnecker said.

The school district said that if parents did not receive an alert, their contact information may not be up to date. The threats are under investigation.