Bomb rumors cause panic

A bomb scare and rumors of a hostage-taking allegedly spread through text messages yesterday sent some 200 parents rushing to the Mandaue City Central School.

The panicked parents rushed to the school at 10 a.m. and demanded the school open the gates so that they could be sure that their children were safe.

Benjamin Tiongzon, Department of Education-Mandaue Division Administrative Officer, managed to convince the parents that the rumors were not true and he allowed them to enter the school and stay at the school grounds.

Tiongzon assured them that their children who were taking their periodical exams were safe and that the police had been monitoring and securing the school since Monday.

The concerned parents said they received text messages of a hostage-taking incident in the school. The message turned out to be a hoax.

Tiongzon said he would have the incident investigated.

He said that he would file charges against anybody found to have started the rumors.

The school had also strictly enforced the security measures to assure the safety of the students./Reporter Jucell Mari P. Cuyos