ROME TOWNSHIP — By mid-morning Wednesday the all-clear was sounded at Fairland High after an early morning bomb threat evacuated the school.

A call came into the school office at 8:47 a.m. Wednesday that a bomb was in the building, according to Ken Ratliff, administrative assistant from the Fairland board office.

“(Students) were evacuated to the next-door building where they are safe and dry,” Ratliff said about 10 that morning.

The Lawrence County Sheriff’s Office was contacted and deputies searched the building.

“Once my office received the telephone call we responded to the scene as well as contacted the Rome Fire Department who also responded,” Sheriff Jeff Lawless said in a press release. “Nothing was found and school administrators resumed class after this extensive search.”

Now Lawless and detectives are investigating the call along with security personnel from the Verizon phone company. There was no number that showed up on the school’s caller ID.

“We will take whatever legal routes to thoroughly prosecute,” Ratliff said.

“The last thing we want is someone to be rewarded for a hoax. But we weren’t going to take any chances with the kids. We want to bring this person to justice.”

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Lawrence County Sheriff’s office.

“We take these threats very seriously,” Lawless said. “I hope the trace of the phone call will provide us the information we need to identify the suspect and aid in the prosecution.”