Two Humboldt County Sheriff’s Department bomb technicians, using x-ray equipment, determined that the boxes posed no threat and removed them. There were no injuries.
The trio of students reported to the window of the University Police Department at 12:30, some three and a half hours after police were notified of the first box, duct-taped to the Science B Building, and volunteered that they had placed the boxes as a “prank.” They claimed that they believed the unusual positioning of the items on ledges outside the buildings would be “interesting” to passersby and observers might wonder how they reached such heights. The students reportedly expressed regret that what they characterized as their “prank” was necessarily considered a potential bomb threat for safety and security reasons.
UPD responded successively to the discovery of the three cardboard boxes near the Science B, Art and Natural Resources and Sciences Buildings. All the boxes were empty.
University Police were informed at 8:03 a.m. of the first box attached to a second-story ledge of the Science B Building. Handwriting on the outside included the words “I will destroy your city.” Officers sealed off the area and evacuated the building. Eventually a number of nearby buildings and common areas were closed as well.
UPD responded at 8:48 a.m. to reports of a second box attached to the outside of the Art Building. They cordoned off the Art Quad area and evacuated the Art Building, Old Music Building, Music Building and the lobby of the Van Duzer Theater.
In the early afternoon, a third box was found on a second-floor ledge of the Natural Resources and Sciences building.
The three students allegedly involved were identified, interviewed and released while the investigation continues.
Final exams and other academic activities scheduled before 2:00 p.m. were rescheduled as needed.
The University posted updates to its Emergency Notification Web site as well as 826-INFO throughout the day. KHSU-FM and other regional media outlets were updated regularly.
The campus Emergency Text Alert System is activated only in the event of a campus-wide emergency. Today’s incidents involved particular, well-defined areas of the campus, and there were many students, staff and faculty who were in unaffected areas. Police chose not to disrupt final exams with a text alert.
Responding agencies included the University Police Department, the Arcata Police Department, the Arcata Volunteer Fire Department, eight members of the Campus Emergency Response Team and a Humboldt County Sheriff’s Department bomb team.
For more information, visit http://www.humboldt.edu/emergency