HAMILTON — Hamilton-Wenham Regional High School and the adjoining Miles River Middle School were locked down for two hours yesterday afternoon, following what school Business Manager Paul Szymanski called "an incident similar to the one in Beverly a couple of weeks ago."

Three ninth-grade English students told The Salem News they found four .22-caliber bullets in their classroom just before 1:30 p.m.

"One was on the teacher's desk, and three were under a chair," freshman Casey Weld said.

After Assistant Principal Philip Conrad was alerted to the discovery, the lockdown began. Some students reported being ushered to the backs of their rooms, out of view of the door, while others said they taped pieces of green paper to the outside of the door to indicate all was well within.

According to a press release from schools Superintendent Marinel McGrath, no guns were found at the school. A state police canine unit was brought in to aid in the search of the building.

There were no reported injuries in the incident, and school officials said the district's three elementary schools were never in danger.

An investigation was ongoing late yesterday afternoon.

During an update at last night's selectmen's meeting, police Chief Walter Cullen said that a student had come forward with information about the incidents. Based on that incident, Cullen told selectmen, police expected to summons an individual today.

McGrath used the school district's emergency phone notification system to contact parents when the incident began.

However, Peabody's Karen Correnti left her cell phone at home yesterday and only found out about the trouble when she arrived to pick up her school-choice daughter at 2:30 p.m.

"I only know they're in a lockdown," Correnti said.

When students were released around 3:55 p.m., 11âÑ2 hours later than usual, they were not allowed to take anything from their lockers and had to leave their backpacks behind.

Before they left the school, they had to pass through metal detectors.

Many stood shivering in shirtsleeves or T-shirts while they waited for rides.

Combined, the schools have a population of just over 1,200 students.

Szymanski said elementary school kids who usually take the bus were only released to the custody of their parents. The fear was their older siblings who would normally meet them at the bus stop might still be in lockdown.

Beverly High School was locked down for about four hours on Oct. 29, after a student discovered five live, .22-caliber rifle bullets in a bathroom.