Multiple police cars and an ambulance raced to the scene of what had been reported as a shooting along Lemay Ferry Road earlier this month, but it turned out to be a prank call.

At least five police SUVs and an ambulance from the Mehlville Fire Protection District raced to the Covington Place apartment complex on Covington Manor Lane along Lemay Ferry Road to respond to a supposed shooting involving a child around 6:45 p.m. Sept. 11.

But when the officers from the South County Precinct arrived, haphazardly parking across the parking lot to respond faster, they found out that the “shooting” was nothing more than a prank call. The ambulance turned around immediately, but police stayed at the scene longer.

Those types of pranks and misuse of the 911 system are infrequent, a spokeswoman for the St. Louis County Police Department said.

“Fortunately, we do not receive many prank calls so this is not a huge problem for us,” said Officer Tracy Panus.

Nearby Lemay Ferry Road has seen several shootings this year.

A woman reported a drive-by shooting in the 800 block of Lemay Ferry Road July 25.

Two alleged carjackers were shot by a victim at Classic Car Wash at 8400 Lemay Ferry Aug. 30, with the victim firing back and killing one of the carjackers. The other carjacker and an accomplice inside a car were charged with murder in the incident under Missouri’s felony murder rule.