COVENTRY — The police yesterday were looking for a man who called them early in the morning, claiming to be armed and waiting to talk to a friend on New London Turnpike.

The call, which came in at 4:40 a.m. from a man who identified himself as William Otte, triggered a manhunt and a major road closure, and disrupted morning bus service for dozens of schoolchildren.

Otte told the police he was at Capozzi’s Salvage Yard on New London Turnpike with a rifle in hand, dressed in fatigues and waiting to speak to a friend about an incident. He did not say what the incident was about.

The police went to the business and immediately shut down New London Turnpike and the vicinity from Arnold Road to the West Warwick line. Police officers from East Greenwich and West Warwick also assisted. By 5 a.m., the West Warwick and Coventry Regional SWAT team and the Coventry K-9 units had arrived to search for Otte, but he couldn’t be found.

The person to whom the armed man wanted to speak has been located and is safe, the police said. The police declined to identify this person. According to records, William E. Otte has been arrested in the past on felony charges, including threats to public officials, vandalism and disorderly conduct. The police would not comment on what Otte told a duty clerk when he called, or if Otte is believed to be dangerous.

“He said, ‘I don’t want to hurt anyone,’ ” according to Sgt. John Shields. “We are still looking for him.”

News of the search disrupted the morning school routine and prompted education officials in Coventry and at the Exeter-West Greenwich regional schools to issue a modified shutdown order to keep students from going outdoors for recess or gym.

Coventry Supt. Kenneth R. DiPietro heard about the search early yesterday morning when school buses were blocked from picking up children on New London Turnpike. He said about 30 children who attend Alan Shawn Feinstein Middle School did not make it to class and officials there postponed the New England Common Assessment Program testing for those grades until today. Another 25 to 30 students did not make it to Coventry High School, and maybe another couple of dozen did not make to Tiogue, Oak Haven and Hopkins Hill elementary schools because of the disruption, he said. Schools were given the “all clear” by about 11 a.m., DiPietro said.

“When our buses couldn’t pick up the children, they notified the four schools affected that students may be late, brought by parents, or out today,” DiPietro said. “I spoke to the police. It wasn’t a crisis for the school. We did a regular security check. … Until they gave us clearance, we held indoor recess.”

West Greenwich Police Chief Ronald Lepre said that when he heard about the search in neighboring Coventry, he felt it was best to secure the schools as a precaution. “Even though we are different towns, we are relatively close,” he said.

Exeter-West Greenwich Supt. Thomas Geismar sent out an e-mail to the principals of the five schools in his district asking that all the doors to the schools be locked. Administrators had posted people at the entrances of the junior and senior high schools to allow parents access for normal business. Outdoor recess was suspended for the day. The district enrolls about 1,900 children in grades pre-kindergarten through 12.

“He’s armed and camouflaged and they are not sure where he went,” Geismar said. “I wanted to make sure all the doors are locked and the kids are safe. I just did that for maybe a two-hour period from the time I heard there was an issue, event, until I got an all clear from the police chief.”

lsparks@projo.com