Several historically Black colleges and universities, known as HBCUs, received bomb threats Monday, prompting lockdowns and investigations by law enforcement.
Howard University (Washington), Southern University and A&M College (Louisiana), Bethune-Cookman University (Florida), Bowie State University (Maryland), Albany State University (Georgia) and Delaware State University (Delaware) confirmed the threats.
“Classes have been canceled and students are to remain in their dorm rooms until an all-clear is issued. University operations will be suspended until further notice and campus entry will be limited at this time,” Southern University and A&M College said in an initial message on its website. The school later announced that it had received an all-clear and would resume classes and normal operations on Tuesday.
News reports say that at Howard, the scene “was cleared without any hazardous material found.” Bethune-Cookman, Bowie State, and Delaware State were also cleared.
A message on Albany State’s website said, “At this time, all campuses, classes, and university operations are canceled until further notice.” The announcement also said, “Once the investigation is complete, you will receive an all-clear message.”
An FBI spokesperson in Atlanta told the Associated Press that, “The FBI takes all potential threats seriously, and we regularly work with our law enforcement partners to determine their credibility.” The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, or ATF, was also involved.
This is the second time in recent weeks that HBCUs have received bomb threats. Several schools received threats in early January and were cleared.
Some information in this report came from The Associated Press.
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