BEAUFORT, N.C. – Three “suspicious” men who visited two North Carolina elementary schools to inquire about crisis procedures were identified within a day with help from the community.

The Carteret County Sheriff’s Office put out an alert yesterday about three “suspicious” men who strolled into Oak Elementary and Bogue Sound Elementary schools shortly after noon Wednesday, WNCN reports.

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School officials told police the men asked questions about whether the schools were designated as crisis evacuation centers, and presented military identification. The men told school officials they were from Fort Bragg, according to the site.

The schools apparently contacted sheriff’s officials, who said the base and other military installations reported no such activity. Authorities put out an alert for the men – described as one white male and two light-skinned “non-Caucasian” males – and included images cropped from school security cameras. By 9:15 p.m. local tipsters directed sheriff’s officials to the men at Cedar Point Campground, where they were questioned by county deputies, NCIS and the FBI.

“The three subjects were part of the U.S. Army Delta Civil Affairs Company stationed out of Fort Bragg, NC. The Civil Affairs unit was conduction an official one-day exercise in the county today,” according to a statement from the sheriff’s office cited by the Carteret County News-Times.

“The Civil Affairs team is deployed to numerous locations throughout the country and is responsible for gathering intelligence in preparation for major disasters including military incidents, hurricane and flooding disasters, and locating food banks and shelter locations,” the statement read.

Authorities confirmed the mens’ military status with their commanders, who said the group was not authorized to visit schools because it’s not part of the “Global Reaction Force Operation Plan.” The commanders said the soldiers took it upon themselves to visit, but didn’t intend to cause a scare, the News-Times reports.

“We are thankful this incident had a positive outcome,” the sheriff’s statement read. “The citizens should be assured that under normal circumstances military operations do alert county officials when they are conducting operations in the county. This particular one fell through the cracks.”

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School officials told WNCN all county schools require someone to be buzzed in to gain access. They also released a statement.

“The Carteret County Public School System takes the security of our campuses very seriously,” it read. “We appreciate the response and support of law enforcement.”

Several folks who commented online were grateful the issue was cleared up, but questioned why the men were able to enter the school so easily.

Others wondered why there was such a mix-up.

“At two different schools and the sheriff can’t confirm with military officials?” ember posted. “Here’s a question, how often does the military ‘train’ by entering a public school and quizzing the staff? And what is the purpose of that training?”