Squirrel hunters cause lockdown at Arkansas primary school

HOT SPRINGS, Ark. — A report of armed men near an Arkansas elementary school led to a campus lockdown before police confirmed the three were actually pest control employees chasing squirrels.

A teacher at Gardner STEM Magnet School in Hot Springs saw the men about 8 a.m. Wednesday and notified administrators. According to a statement from the Hot Springs Police Department, the teacher said it looked like three men carrying rifles were running toward the school.

Officers determined the men, who were carrying pellet guns, were employees of a pest control company hired to eradicate squirrels at a neighboring apartment complex. Police say the employees fired a shot at a squirrel, missed and chased the squirrel onto school property.

A school employee said the lockdown was lifted after about an hour.