INWOOD, Iowa -- The Inwood Christian School and residential area around it were evacuated Wednesday after a bomb scare was initiated at the school. A report of a possible bomb was received Wednesday morning, apparently prompted by a reference made by a student.
At the time, Iowa State Trooper Vince Kurtz was at the school conducting a class on bullying. School officials approached him about the report, and Kurtz initiated an evacuation of the school and contacted the Lyon County Sheriff's Office.
Inwood Fire and Rescue was paged to the school, and the firefighters sealed off a two-block perimeter around the school and evacuated homes within one block of the building.
Iowa State Fire Marshal and bomb technician David Schipper was called to the scene, and he used X-ray equipment and a bomb dog to clear the school. The suspected camouflage bookbag was located, examined and taken out of the building. No bomb was found.
The 12-year-old student who made reference to a bomb in his backpack was taken into custody and charged with making a false report of a bomb, a Class D felony. The youth was transported to the Youth Emergency Services Center in Cherokee, Iowa.
