No threat found following active shooter alert at hospital in Emporia, Kansas

Emporia State University in Kansas issued an emergency alert on Thursday, warning of a reported active shooter near Newman Regional Health hospital. Authorities later said the alarm was unfounded and no threat was identified.

“An active shooter has been reported near Cora Miller Hall and Newman Regional Health,” the ESU alert said on Thursday afternoon, urging students and faculty to run, hide, or fight and providing instructions on how to respond.

Emporia Police said that officers responded to an active shooter alarm at Newman Regional Health and searched the premises.

“It appears to be an alarm only — no active threat has been identified,” police said, adding that officers remained on scene as a precaution.

Footage from the area showed multiple police vehicles outside the hospital.

The incident comes amid a wave of false active shooter reports at campuses across the United States in recent days. More than 20 universities in multiple states have been targeted in the past week. Authorities have described those cases as hoaxes, though no arrests have been announced.

Emporia is a city in east-central Kansas, located about 90 miles southwest of Kansas City and 50 miles southeast of Topeka.