Historically, several black colleges and universities in the United States received bomb threats on Monday, forcing schools to issue shelter-in-place orders and cancel classes. and active during the day. Some of the schools that received threats include Albany State University in Georgia, Southern University and A&M College in Louisiana, Howard University in Washington, DC, and Bowie State University in Maryland.
“Due to the emergency on campus, classes will be virtually closed to each other. Everyone on campus is advised to shelter in place until further notice,” Bowie State University said in a statement. newspaper on the school website.
This is the second time this month that Black colleges and universities have faced a barrage of bomb threats. On January 5, eight HBCUs received threats, but no suspicious packages or explosives were found. Federal and local authorities are investigating the incidents. ATF Acting Deputy Superintendent Tom Chittum on a call with reporters on Monday confirmed that the agency was on the scene investigating bomb threats at schools.
“The use of interstate facilities to make bomb threats is a federal crime,” he said. “ATF will provide our investigative expertise and assist with that investigation. But obviously the facts are preliminary.”
The Daytona Beach Police Department said Bethune-Cookman College in Daytona Beach was placed on lockdown Monday morning, following reports of a bomb threat. Police were on the scene at the campus and said they would release more information later in the day.
The Washington Metropolitan Police Department said at Howard University, “the scene was cleared without any hazardous materials found” after a threat was previously reported.
Southern University and A&M College said on their websites that classes have been canceled and students must stay in their dorm rooms until clear notice is issued.
“University activities will be suspended until further notice and access to the campus will be restricted at this time,” the school said.
(Reporting by Brendan O’Brien, Kanishka Singh, Barbara Goldberg and Sarah N. Lynch; Editing by Mark Porter)
