HENDERSONVILLE, N.C.—Police in North Carolina say a woman hunting rats on her property caused a scare at a neighboring public school.

The Times-News of Hendersonville reported Friday that a bus driver saw the woman and officials thought she was an armed student on school property. So they kept students and staff inside the Balfour Education Center for about an hour until police determined she wasn’t a threat.

Authorities say the woman wasn’t on school property, wasn’t doing anything wrong and had a rifle to shoot rats. She wasn’t identified.

Sheriff Rick Davis says a call to authorities about the woman was properly handled.