Bomb squad responds to suspicious device on school bus in New Gloucester

NEW GLOUCESTER, Maine (WMTW) – A group of Gray-New Gloucester students are safe after a suspicious device was reported on their school bus, leading to a road closure and a response from the Maine State Police Bomb Squad.

The Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office said it responded to a report of a suspicious device on a Maine School District 15 bus shortly after 2:50 p.m. Tuesday.

Authorities said there were about 15 students, a mix of middle and high school students, on the bus at the time of the incident.

The school bus driver immediately stopped the bus in a safe location and evacuated the students from the vehicle.

Authorities said a state police bomb squad technician from Mains and a bomb detection K-9 team responded to the scene, along with Cumberland County sheriff’s deputies, Auburn police officers, New Gloucester firefighters and Auburn firefighters.

MSAD 15 Superintendent Craig King told our media partner, WMTW, that the safety issue occurred on Bus 13 during the drop-off route for students from Gray-New Gloucester Middle School and Gray-New Gloucester High School.

According to King, all students and the bus driver are safe. The superintendent also said the school district will provide alternate transportation for elementary students who take the 13 bus.

The King shared a message with the MSAF 15 families later in the evening.

“We are writing to provide more information about the security incident that occurred this afternoon on Bus 13. While on the bus ride from the middle school to the high school, students reported seeing another student displaying and talking about a suspicious device. The bus driver stopped the bus in a safe location off the road, evacuated all students to a safe area away from the bus, and the transportation department immediately called 911. First responders, including the school resource officer and MSAD 15 administrators, arrived on scene a short time later. The students were then transported to Memorial School and reunited with their families,” King said in his message.

The Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office said MSAD 15 officials safely transported the evacuated students from Ricker Road to a nearby location.

“Immediate action was taken to close the road, create a safe environment, evacuate the bus of the few students on it and make the scene safe,” said Lt. Jim Estabrook of the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office.

The section of Ricker Road, which is part of Route 122, was closed between Bald Hill Road and the Auburn line for about two hours. This section of the road is about 0.7 miles long.

Additionally, the Auburn Police Department posted on Facebook that they were diverting southbound traffic on Hotel Road at the intersection of Kittyhawk Avenue due to a report of a suspicious package/device near the Auburn-New Gloucester line. Traffic restrictions on Hotel Road have since been lifted.

The Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office said investigators have determined there is no longer a potential threat to the school district, students or the public.

The incident is still under investigation. It is not known what the suspicious device was or how it got on the bus.