Vice principal: Rumored threats at Harbor not ‘credible’

Newport Harbor High School administrators tried to quash rumors about threatened violence on campus Friday with a message sent out to parents saying they had uncovered no current danger.

“Several students have expressed concern about coming to school tomorrow, as have some parents,” Assistant Principal Jack Cusick said in an email to parents Thursday. “I can assure you that my office has looked into these rumors, and no credible threats exist at this time”

The email did not include what the rumors entailed, but Cusick said students may be worried because of recent events like the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut and the shooting scare at Fashion Island on Saturday in which one man was arrested without injuring anyone.

“We are forced to look for warning signs, and the coming of the so-called ‘Mayan Apocalypse’ doesn’t help,” he wrote, urging calm. “This leads to rumors and more fear, and the whole thing can spin out of control pretty quickly; we all need to make sure that doesn’t happen.”

Corona del Mar High School experienced similar rumors earlier this week and also emailed parents saying there was no credible threat, said Laura Boss, spokeswoman for the Newport-Mesa Unified School District.

Boss declined to discuss specifics of the rumors, saying they had been investigated by police and deemed not credible.

The district will continue working closely will police in both Costa Mesa and Newport Beach she said.

— Jeremiah Dobruck

Twitter: @jeremiahdobruck