Mountain View Middle School and Bonney Lake High School were locked down Friday morning after students reported seeing a man with a gun just off school grounds.

According to a press release form the Bonney Lake Police Department, officers were dispatched to Mountain View at approximately 8 a.m.

Two students reported seeing an man holding a pistol near a wooded area just outside the school’s perimeter fence. The man was described as an African American male in his 20s, about 6-feet tall with a medium build and wearing a dark sweatshirt and black shorts.

The subject reportedly fled on foot, once seen by the students.

Both Mountain View Middle School and nearby Bonney Lake High School were placed in lockdown conditions by school officials. BLPD Officers arrived in the area and with assistance from Pierce County Sheriff’s Deputies, conducted area checks around both schools.

No suspect was located and no other citizens in the area reported seeing any subject matching the provided description.

Both schools returned to normal conditions upon completion of the area checks.

The area between the two schools includes a wooded area with a series of trails that connect to surrounding neighborhoods. Police in the past have received multiple reports about incidents in the woods, but it has been calm this year.

Any persons with information on this incident are requested to contact Bonney Lake Police.