A March 13 bomb threat at the University of Virginia’s Shannon Library was determined to be a hoax. UVA issued the all clear less than three hours after evacuating Shannon and Clemons libraries.
“University Police responded to an emailed bomb threat at Shannon Library on Friday, March 13. … No bomb was discovered during the investigation, and the threat was determined to be a hoax possibly linked to a series of similar threats sent to Virginia colleges on Friday,” said Deputy Spokesperson Bethanie Glover in a 2:01pm statement. “The libraries were reopened around 1:45 p.m. once the scene was confirmed to be safe, and both locations have resumed normal operations.”
George Mason University and Bridgewater College received similar threats the same day, which were also determined to be faux reports. The bomb threat emails, seemingly targeted at Virginia universities, were sent out one day after a shooting at Old Dominion University that left two dead, including the attacker.
The UVA bomb threat hoax marks the second intentional false report of violence at Shannon Library in less than five months. Just days before the incident, UVA Police Chief Tim Longo met with student council on March 10 to discuss the swatting incident at the library last semester. The November 3 false alarm, in which a caller reported an active attacker with a gun, resulted in the issuance of a RUN HIDE FIGHT alert on Grounds.
