EDWARDSVILLE - The morning active shooter threat call to the Pontoon Beach Police Department created a huge scare, but thankfully, law enforcement quickly figured out the situation and it ended peacefully with someone in custody.
A call came into Pontoon Beach Police Department that there was an active shooter at the Menasha Packaging Plant in Edwardsville. After a second 911 call, Pontoon Beach activated other agencies to respond because of the serious nature of the situation.
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Pontoon Beach Police Chief Chris Modrusic said his heart sank when he heard the initial call. The chief said he was very thankful for how things ended and he greatly appreciated the assistance from area law enforcement.
"In this day and age, you have to take these types of things seriously," he said. "IN the case of an active shooter, there are a lot of lives at stake there. There were 200 people working this morning at the plant. That is a lot of lives at risk."
Modrustic said Pontoon Beach has a small police department, so the community is reliant on assistance from other agencies in emergency situations like this one.
Edwardsville Police, Granite City Police, Glen Carbon Police, Roxana Police, Illinois State Police, Madison County Sheriff's Office, Pontoon Beach Police, Mitchell Fire Department, and Alton Memorial Ambulance were among some observed at the scene. There were also other law enforcement personnel on hand.
"We are fortunate it worked out the way it did," the chief said.
A man is in custody in regard to making a false threat. Chief Modrusic said they will work with the Madison County State's Attorney's Office to determine possible charges and how to resolve the matter.
Chris Rhodes also contributed to this story.
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