An alert on Thursday at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst warned personnel and families of an active shooter on the facility, advising people to seek immediate shelter and find cover if they were outdoors. That alert prompted a response to secure the base at around 3:00 p.m.
The base went into a complete state of lockdown.
The grim alert read, “LOCKDOWN LOCKDOWN LOCKDOWN Active shooter reported on JBMDL BLDG 5231. All Personnel are to lockdown until further notice. All personnel outdoors should take cover.”
It was no drill.
In light of recent events in the Middle East and a mass shooting in Maine the day prior, base officials went into emergency mode.
Thirty minutes later, an all-clear order was given.
Department of Defense officials later confirmed that there was no active shooter and the incident was a false alarm.
“JBMDL is no longer under lockdown condition. We received notification of an active shooter on the joint base. After investigating the incident, it was found that there was no active shooter,” base officials said in a social media post. “We appreciate the public’s concern and thank you for your continued support.”
The Department of Defense did not elaborate further on the incident but reported no active shooter, and all base personnel were safe and accounted for.