GORHAM — A police search for a man reportedly wearing combat gear and toting a rifle on South Street Monday locked down three schools, the library and town hall and shut down a section of Gorham Village.

A search for about two hours included officers from multiple law enforcement agencies, but the intense manhunt didn’t turn up a suspect.

“The likelihood is there was no man with a gun,” Police Chief Daniel Jones said Monday afternoon. “We have to take all these threats seriously.”

The investigation continued after the scene cleared early Monday afternoon.

Agencies assisting Gorham included police from Westbrook and Windham, the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Department, and even the U.S. Marshal’s Office.

The turnout of police and cruisers caused a stir in the village. “It’s quite a show,” Carson Lynch, owner of The Gorham Grind coffee house, said by telephone while watching from his window. He said a sheriff’s cruiser was parked in his lot near the village square.

Jones said a caller about 10 a.m. reported seeing a man dressed in camouflage “ghillie” gear, a suit decked with leaves, and armed with a rifle near an apartment building on South Street.

Police focused their search in the 57-59 address area of South Street, Jones said. South Street was shut down between Main and Lincoln streets.

Jones said residents in the area were notified of the situation by a reverse 911 call and police went “door-to-door.”  But police did not mandate an evacuation in the search area.

Jones said police with permission of residents checked three dwellings, sheds and backyards without locating a suspect.

Three schools were locked down. They were the middle school on Weeks Road; high school, Morrill Avenue; and Village Elementary School, Robie Street. Superintendent Heather Perry called it a soft lockdown and said parents were notified.

“A soft lockdown is when we make sure all exterior doors are locked, and no students or adults are allowed outside of the facility,” School Board member Suzanne Phillips said.

Perry reported at 12:19 p.m. the lockdowns were lifted. “We are thankful for the excellent communication provided to us by the Gorham Police Department that has allowed us to deal promptly with this situation,” Perry said.

Besides the school buildings, Baxter Memorial Library, 71 South St., was also locked down, as were town offices in the Gorham Municipal Center, 75 South St.

“We were temporally on lockdown while the police investigated a report of a suspicious person on South Street,” Town Manager David Cole said.

Fire Chief Robert Lefebvre said his fire-police blocked several streets and a rescue unit was at the scene on stand-by. Lefebvre’s official vehicle was utilized as the emergency command center for the operation.

Police patrols through the area continued Monday afternoon as is investigation of the incident. “We’re still following up with the complainant,” Jones said.

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