The Owensboro Police Department responded to Owensboro Health Regional Hospital on Tuesday after the facility received a bomb threat by phone, according to authorities. The threat is believed to have been a prank call, officials said.
The incident occurred at approximately 3:30 p.m., according to police records. Officers and detectives searched the hospital using a K-9 trained to detect explosives, but no devices were found, OPD Public Information Officer Mark Hammonds told Owensboro Times.
Hammonds said detectives traced the phone number and currently believe the threat was a prank call. No charges have been filed as of early Wednesday afternoon, Hammonds said.
“Although we believe it was a prank call, we take it seriously, and detectives are working hard to identify the person responsible for making that call,” OPD said in a statement.
Brian Hamby, director of marketing at OH, said patient care was not affected by the threat.
“Owensboro Health has policies and procedures in place for this exact situation, and our team followed them. The safety of our team and those we serve is always our top priority. Patient care was never disrupted, and we continued to receive and treat patients throughout the day,” he said. “We appreciate the collaboration with our local police and fire departments to respond to this situation in a timely manner.”
