The Little Rock Fire Department's bomb squad neutralized a suspicious package that put an elementary school on lockdown for more than an hour Friday afternoon, officials said.
The bomb squad did not find explosives or any other harmful material in the package that showed up in the vicinity of Williams Magnet Elementary School, according to Fire Department spokesman Capt. Jason Weaver.
Ron Self, director of security for the Little Rock School District, said the box's contents looked like a science fair project.
Investigators found a wooden cigar box with wires and a motor and debris that looked like it was more than 40 years old inside the suitcase, he said.
A security officer saw the suitcase sitting in a grove of trees just after noon Friday, Self said.
The security officer opened the suitcase, saw the box and wires, and then called the police, Weaver said.
Officers were dispatched to the school about 12:11 p.m., according to records.
Self said the officers agreed that the package looked suspicious and called the Fire Department, which sent the bomb squad.
The package wasn't close to the school but was in a grassy area near a parking lot at the westernmost entrance to the campus, said Pamela Smith, a spokesman for the school district.
Weaver said the bomb unit scanned the container but could not identify anything inside.
Officers opened the wooden container remotely with a tool that shoots water at high velocity, opening the box and neutralizing whatever may be inside, Weaver said.
The small cigar box had electronic components, protruding wires, and a small motor with a fan, Weaver said.
"We can't really say what it is," he said.
The Fire Department confiscated the suitcase as evidence, Weaver said.
Students and employees were kept in the school at 7301 Evergreen St. while the package was investigated, Smith said. She estimated that the lockdown started about 1 p.m.
Smith said school officials called to inform parents about the situation, and by 2:10 p.m. children were released to parents who had arrived before the regular 2:25 p.m. dismissal bell.
The school has about 445 pupils in kindergarten through fifth grades.
Metro on 02/03/2019