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FBI investigating Georgia school shooting hoaxes as 'acts of domestic terrorism,' Kemp says

Active shooters were reported in schools at least three cities in south and southeast Georgia on Wednesday morning.

ATLANTA — Editor's note: This story has been updated to correct and remove Forsyth Central High from being one of the listed schools impacted.

Gov. Brian Kemp on Wednesday vowed authorities "will go after" the perpetrators of school threats and hoaxes, after several schools in southeast Georgia were sent into a panic over rumors of school shootings.

The governor added that the FBI is already investigating the hoaxes as "acts of domestic terrorism."

The report of an active shooter generated a major police response at Savannah High School before officials confirmed a hoax, and 11Alive's sister station in Jacksonville, First Coast News, reported an active shooter hoax happened at Brunswick High School. The City of Valdosta also reported a lockdown at Valdosta High School in response to a hoax.

Closer to Atlanta, there were also reports of a similar situation at Cartersville High School.

Gov. Kemp said in his statement - calling these incidents a "cruel hoax" - that in each of these situations, "law enforcement across all levels immediately sprang into action."

"They did not hesitate to rush toward potential danger to protect our children," Kemp said. "Within five minutes of the first emergency call at the first school, state troopers were in the building, combing for any threats."

The governor also pointed to several policies the state enacted in response earlier this year to the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas. Those include 400 additional school resource officers the state plans to have trained and at schools by the end of the year, and a specialized team operating out of Georgia Emergency Management & Homeland Security (GEMA) to respond to threats throughout the state.

"Rest assured, for the criminals who orchestrated these hoaxes, we will go after them with every single resource available," Kemp said. "The FBI is actively investigating these acts of domestic terrorism, and we will continue to diligently work with them to see these culprits are prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law."

   

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