Moorhead police say that a large police response, a shelter-in-place alert and nearby school lockdowns were caused by an HVAC malfunction that was mistaken for a gunshot.

According to the Moorhead Police Department, an officer was conducting a follow-up on the 1800 block of 20th Street South at around 9:30 a.m. Wednesday when he heard what sounded like a gunshot and called for backup.

A large police presence was deployed, and a shelter-in-place alert was issued for the area between 12th Avenue South and 24th Avenue South, from 14th Street to 26th Street "out of an abundance of caution," according to the department.

Nearby schools also made the decision to implement lockdown procedures during the incident.

Officers interviewed witnesses and reviewed video surveillance and determined the

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