Rumors spread like wildfire as students tried to answer why Palmetto was under a ‘Code Red’ on Friday, September 23.

“I heard that there was a guy running around in his underwear with a gun,” senior Robert Householder said. “He was planning on shooting people.”

At the time that Palmetto went under a lock down, approximately 8:50 AM, not everyone realized the seriousness of the matter at hand. Some questioned whether there was really anything wrong, while others took the alarm very seriously, realizing the possible dangers.

“I locked up the room and everyone literally got under the desk,” English teacher Dalia Pulido said. “We thought it was just a drill for a while but we stayed down there in our circle the whole time, bonding and talking about preventative measures.”

The situation had been taken care of by 9:20 but students’ confusion had already led to the proliferation of rumors throughout the school and the community.

“Everybody was calling their mamas and daddies, telling them that there was bodies all over the floor,” senior Stephon Dotson said, “Everyone was sitting around class telling stories. I heard the kid got expelled and he came to school today with a gun but got caught with weed and then he broke into someone’s house.”

In reality, the Code Red was called into order by the school board police for an off-campus issue. Palmetto was not under any direct threat, but the school board felt it crucial to take necessary precautions.