ORANGE : Bomb Found Near School Lunch Area

A 15-year-old boy was arrested Tuesday for allegedly planting a pipe bomb near an outdoor lunch area at El Modena High School, police said.

The sophomore, whose name was withheld because of his age, was arrested after school officials told authorities that they suspected him, Sgt. Jim Hudson said.

El Modena Principal Gail Richards said a school counselor spotted the pipe bomb, which measured about 10 inches in length and half an inch in diameter, at about 11 a.m. in the quad, where pupils were gathering for lunch.

The counselor quickly put the explosive in a drinking fountain and students were told to stay away from the area.

An Orange County sheriff’s bomb squad disarmed it on the campus about an hour later and removed the device for further examination, police said.

“We are very happy that the device did not detonate, causing injury on campus,” Hudson said.

Richards said it appeared that the boy brought the explosive to the campus as a joke. She added that school officials will punish the student but declined to elaborate.

There was no panic on school grounds and no injuries, the principal said.

“All the fear has gone out of it,” Richards said after the incident. “But at the time, it was a scary situation.”