The Onalaska School District evacuated its elementary and middle school building Monday morning as the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office (LCSO) investigated a possible bomb threat.
According to district officials, the believed threat stemmed from the discovery of materials left at the school by the local K9 training agency My 2 Scents K9, owned by Kristi Bridgman.
The training reportedly took place Sunday without the district’s knowledge, despite an existing agreement between the district and the agency.
Superintendent Brenda Padgett said the agency had access to the building and keys.
“Unfortunately, they failed to notify us that they were on campus yesterday, and also made the error of leaving a training aid behind,” Padgett said in a 1 p.m. news release Monday.
Padgett said the aid “looked like a bag with powder in it that is meant to create a scent that a bomb dog would alert to.”
Upon discovery of the unknown substance, the district’s school resource officer and administrators evacuated the building and contacted law enforcement. Officials then decided to release all district students “out of an abundance of caution,” Padgett said.
Lewis County Sheriff Rob Snaza said the private contractor trains police K9s in drug and bomb detection. He said the LCSO does not use the agency for its K9 training.
Snaza said investigators identified Bridgman by reviewing security footage. When contacted, Bridgman indicated she had been at the school.
“At that point, we are able to confidently say that no threat existed,” Padgett said.
Snaza said the Washington State Patrol (WSP) assisted the sheriff’s office by conducting a road closure at the scene. Lewis County Fire District 1 also responded to the incident.
Padgett said the district will no longer partner with My 2 Scents K9.
Snaza said the LCSO is conducting its own investigation and is in contact with WSP, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Lewis County Prosecutor’s Office.
“I do consider this very serious,” Snaza said, adding that the district did a “fabulous job” responding to the situation.
Bridgman released a written apology Monday addressed to the Onalaska School District’s families and community members.
“For the last two and a half years, the Onalaska School District has opened its doors and allowed me to train law enforcement K9 teams on district property,” Bridgman said. “That generosity has meant a great deal to me. In return, I've always tried to show up for the district when I can, whether that's school dances, career presentations, or donating to different school organizations.”
Bridgman said she made a mistake and understood why leaving the training aid “could cause fear and concern.”
“For that, I am truly sorry,” Bridgman said. “I'm sorry to the staff and administrators who had to deal with a situation I created. I'm sorry to the parents who may have worried. And most importantly, I'm sorry that something connected to training meant to make our communities safer instead made people feel unsafe.”
The K9 trainer said she would learn from the incident and make changes to ensure she is “more accountable with every training aid before leaving a training location.”
The district first reported the possible threat on Facebook at about 8:35 a.m. Monday.
According to a news release issued at about 10:20 a.m. Monday, district officials sent the evacuated students and staff to the high school building and contacted law enforcement.
The district called the response “swift and thorough.”
“We are thankful for the patience shown by parents as we navigated this issue and worked to ensure that the safety of our students was our top priority,” officials said. “Most of all, we are thankful for our staff and our local law enforcement and fire agencies for their support.”
Padgett said the district used text alerts and robo calls to communicate information during the incident.
The district’s phone lines have been inoperable since Oct. 29 due to a reported server outage in Seattle.
