{
  "id": "2018-02-16-highline-college-shots-fired-lockdown",
  "slug": "highline-college-shots-fired-lockdown-2018-02-16",
  "institution": {
    "name": "Highline College",
    "shortName": "Highline",
    "state": "WA",
    "type": "community-college",
    "enrollment": 17000
  },
  "incident": {
    "date": "2018-02-16",
    "type": "swatting",
    "cleryCategory": "emergency-notification",
    "headline": "Reported gunshots prompt two-hour lockdown; police found no evidence of a shooting",
    "headlinePublic": "Reported gunshots prompt two-hour lockdown; police found no evidence of a shooting",
    "summary": "On the morning of February 16, 2018, [911 callers reported hearing roughly eight gunshots near Highline College](https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/law-justice/highline-college-in-des-moines-on-lockdown-after-reports-of-gunfire/) in Des Moines, Washington, triggering a roughly two-hour campus lockdown and a massive multi-agency response. After searching the campus, [police found 'zero evidence' of any shooting](https://www.cnn.com/2018/02/16/us/washington-highline-college-lockdown/index.html) and lifted the lockdown around 11:40 a.m. PST.",
    "outcome": "About a dozen law-enforcement and emergency agencies responded, including three SWAT teams and the FBI, ATF and Washington State Patrol. Officers found no shell casings, bullet holes or other evidence of gunfire. The cause of the reports was never determined; some accounts mentioned fireworks.",
    "resolution": "unfounded"
  },
  "alerts": [
    {
      "sequence": 1,
      "type": "initial",
      "timestamp": "2018-02-16T08:57:00-08:00",
      "channel": "official-social",
      "verbatimText": "This is not a drill. Close doors, close windows. Police are responding to campus. Do not come to campus if you are on your way.",
      "isVerbatimConfirmed": true,
      "sourceUrl": "https://patch.com/washington/across-wa/police-responding-highline-college-shots-fired-report",
      "sourceDescription": "Patch (Across Washington) quoting Highline College's official Facebook lockdown post verbatim",
      "annotations": [
        "The first 911 call reporting about eight gunshots came in at 8:52 a.m. PST, and the campus went into lockdown at 8:57 a.m. PST, according to the Seattle Times.",
        "Highline pushed lockdown instructions through Facebook as a primary channel, this first post both ordered shelter and warned commuters not to approach campus.",
        "Highline's main campus hosts roughly 5,000 people on a typical weekday, so the lockdown instruction had to reach a large, dispersed community-college population quickly."
      ],
      "characterCount": 127
    },
    {
      "sequence": 2,
      "type": "update",
      "timestampApprox": "Shortly after 9:00 a.m. PST on February 16, 2018, as agencies converged on campus",
      "channel": "official-social",
      "verbatimText": "Remain in lockdown - This is not a drill All Buildings need to remain in lockdown. Barricade doors and windows. Police are responding and we will have further details shortly.",
      "isVerbatimConfirmed": true,
      "sourceUrl": "https://patch.com/washington/across-wa/police-responding-highline-college-shots-fired-report",
      "sourceDescription": "Patch (Across Washington) quoting Highline College's official Facebook follow-up lockdown post verbatim",
      "annotations": [
        "Verbatim from Highline's follow-up Facebook post; the run-on phrasing 'This is not a drill All Buildings' is preserved exactly as posted.",
        "The post escalated to a barricade instruction as three SWAT teams, the FBI, and ATF responded.",
        "Highline's reliance on social media for real-time updates reflects how community colleges with large commuter populations use public-facing channels alongside internal alerts."
      ],
      "characterCount": 175
    },
    {
      "sequence": 3,
      "type": "all-clear",
      "timestamp": "2018-02-16T11:40:00-08:00",
      "channel": "sms",
      "verbatimText": "The emergency condition is over and law enforcement have given the all clear. The campus is closed for the remainder of the day, February 16. Please obey instructions from traffic officers and we appreciate patience as people are leaving the campus. Parents can still re-unify with students at Lowes parking lot at 24050 Pacific Highway.",
      "isVerbatimConfirmed": true,
      "sourceUrl": "https://www.nwpb.org/2018/02/16/clear-highline-college-lockdown-draws-large-emergency-response/",
      "sourceDescription": "Northwest Public Broadcasting (NWPB) and CNN reporting quoting the verbatim Highline College official Facebook all-clear post issued approximately 11:40 a.m. PST on February 16, 2018",
      "annotations": [
        "Verbatim text from Highline College's official Facebook all-clear post, confirmed in Northwest Public Broadcasting and CNN coverage of the incident; the lockdown was lifted around 11:40 a.m. PST",
        "The specific family reunification instructions (Lowes parking lot at 24050 Pacific Highway) are characteristic of community-college emergency protocols aimed at the large commuter and off-campus parent population",
        "The roughly two-hour gap between the 8:57 a.m. PST lockdown and the 11:40 a.m. PST lift reflects the time needed for SWAT teams to clear a multi-building campus with no located shooter"
      ],
      "characterCount": 337
    }
  ],
  "context": "Highline College is a community college in Des Moines, Washington, just south of Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. On February 16, 2018, [several 911 callers reported hearing gunshots near campus just before 9 a.m. PST](https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/law-justice/highline-college-in-des-moines-on-lockdown-after-reports-of-gunfire/), prompting an immediate lockdown. [About a dozen agencies and three SWAT teams responded](https://www.king5.com/article/news/highline-college-under-lockdown-for-reports-of-shots-fired/281-519687586), along with the FBI and ATF, in a response that drew national coverage. After a methodical search, [police announced they had found 'zero evidence' of any shooting](https://www.cnn.com/2018/02/16/us/washington-highline-college-lockdown/index.html) and lifted the lockdown around 11:40 a.m. PST. The episode is an example of how unverified gunfire reports (whether mistaken sounds, fireworks, or deliberate false reports) can shut down a campus of thousands for hours. [Local coverage noted the conflicting accounts](https://www.federalwaymirror.com/news/highline-college-on-lockdown-gunfire-reported/) and that the cause was never conclusively established.",
  "keyFindings": [
    "Highline locked down at 8:57 a.m. PST, five minutes after the first 911 call reporting about eight gunshots, and lifted the lockdown around 11:40 a.m. PST",
    "A dozen agencies and three SWAT teams responded, illustrating the scale of mobilization that unverified gunfire reports can trigger at a community college",
    "Police found no shell casings, bullet holes, or any physical evidence of a shooting; the cause was never confirmed",
    "The two-hour lockdown of a 5,000-person daily campus shows the operational cost of shots-fired reports that cannot be quickly verified or ruled out"
  ],
  "sources": [
    {
      "title": "After 911 calls and a lockdown at Highline College, police find 'zero evidence' of a shooting - The Seattle Times",
      "url": "https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/law-justice/highline-college-in-des-moines-on-lockdown-after-reports-of-gunfire/",
      "type": "local-media"
    },
    {
      "title": "Officials: No active shooter at Highline College, all clear given - KING 5",
      "url": "https://www.king5.com/article/news/highline-college-under-lockdown-for-reports-of-shots-fired/281-519687586",
      "type": "local-media"
    },
    {
      "title": "Terror, Then Relief After Highline College Shooting False Alarm (Patch, Across Washington), quotes the verbatim Facebook lockdown posts",
      "url": "https://patch.com/washington/across-wa/police-responding-highline-college-shots-fired-report",
      "type": "local-media"
    },
    {
      "title": "No evidence of shooting found at locked-down college - CNN",
      "url": "https://www.cnn.com/2018/02/16/us/washington-highline-college-lockdown/index.html",
      "type": "local-media"
    },
    {
      "title": "Police find no evidence of shooting at Highline College - Federal Way Mirror",
      "url": "https://www.federalwaymirror.com/news/highline-college-on-lockdown-gunfire-reported/",
      "type": "local-media"
    },
    {
      "title": "'All Clear' For Highline College After Lockdown Draws Large Emergency Response - Northwest Public Broadcasting",
      "url": "https://www.nwpb.org/2018/02/16/clear-highline-college-lockdown-draws-large-emergency-response/",
      "type": "local-media"
    }
  ],
  "confidence": "medium",
  "tags": [
    "swatting",
    "shots-fired",
    "lockdown",
    "community-college",
    "washington",
    "des-moines",
    "unfounded",
    "emergency-notification"
  ],
  "dateAdded": "2026-05-28",
  "lastUpdated": "2026-07-16",
  "addedBy": "ingestion"
}