DEAL, NJ — A bomb threat forced the evacuation of Deal Elementary School on Tuesday afternoon, temporarily disrupting voting at the polling location.
Superintendent of Schools Donato Saponaro was notified via email at 1:33 p.m. about a threat of a bomb located within the polling location at Deal Elementary School, 201 Roseld Avenue.
The threat was similar to one received by members of the Borough of Lake Como earlier in the day.
The Deal Police Department immediately evacuated all students, parents and faculty who were attending parent-teacher conferences, as well as election workers, voters and staff.
The Monmouth County Sheriff’s Office was alerted to the threat, and members of the Sheriff’s Office, Marlboro and Bradley Beach Police K-9 Units, along with members of the Deal Fire Department, responded to sweep the area for possible explosive devices.
While the search was ongoing, the polling location was moved from Deal Elementary to Borough Hall for approximately two hours.
At approximately 3:13 p.m., law enforcement personnel pronounced Deal Elementary safe and clear, yielding negative results for any explosive devices.
At 3:30 p.m., election personnel returned to Deal Elementary and voting resumed at the original location.
Monmouth County Prosecutor Raymond S. Santiago and Deal Police Chief Ronen Neuman are monitoring the situation to ensure the protection and safety of residents as voting continues until polls close at 8 p.m.
