SHILLINGTON, Pa. – Friday night’s football game at Governor Mifflin was forced to end early after what authorities now say were false reports of a student with a gun.
Football players were rushed into the locker rooms, and fans ran out of the stadium.
“What occurred at this game was very unfortunate,” said John Adams, Berks County district attorney.
According to a new statement posted online by the Governor Mifflin School District, the athletic director, along with school employees, were already dealing with a fight behind the scoreboard and had reported it to the police.
Then, as officers were responding, several students ran from that area, yelling that someone had a gun.
“All the reports have indicated that there was not a gun and that this was a situation that sort of got out of hand,” said Adams.
Police say this happened at the same time as the fight, but the two incidents are unrelated.
After learning of both the fight and the possible gun, the athletic director and police agreed to promptly end the game and evacuate the stadium.
Makayla Kelley, a cheerleader for Governor Mifflin High School, was on the sideline at Friday night’s game when she says she heard people say someone had a gun.
“It’s, like, just scary,” Kelley said. “I hope it’s not something that’s going to happen again.”
She said that she, along with the other cheerleaders, football players and fans, were told to evacuate.
“We ran across the field, and we were in the boys’ locker room,” Kelley said. “And then we were in the gymnasium waiting to be cleared, and they were telling us that somebody might be outside with a weapon.”
Police searched the student accused and found no weapon. They also found no weapons anywhere in the stadium.
“This matter is under investigation, and we will continue to investigate,” Adams said.
In a statement, the superintendent of Wilson School District said: “We are proud of how our coaches, advisors, and students responded to the situation at the Wilson/Governor Mifflin football game,” he said.
“Their priority was keeping students safe, and they worked quickly, with help from our families, to evacuate students from the facility,” the post went on to say.
“At this point, I am not aware of anyone being charged with anything,” Adams said.
Kelley says even though it was a false alarm, it was still a scary situation.
“I don’t want to have to go through that, like, expect it again,” she said. “Like, that shouldn’t be normalized.”
Eric Reeser used to play football for Governor Mifflin. He said he feels bad for the players.
“It’s heartbreaking to see that happen to the kids who work their tail off to play a game and have it end that way,” Reeser said.
The next is home game for Governor Mifflin is this Friday night when they take on Boyertown.