Campus of one of the largest universities in the US, located close to the Mexican border was evacuated after officials received an anonymous bomb threat.
Students and staff of the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) got a text message around 2 pm yesterday, warning of a bomb and telling them to leave campus. Students were seen rushing out of the campus shortly afterwards, and the roads around campus were clogged by heavy traffic.
UTEP Police Chief Cliff Walsh declined to give details about the threat or to comment whether they have a suspect, citing their ongoing investigation. But he said the campus appeared to be safe. Later, UTEP said in a statement that the campus was re-opened by evening, the Houston Chronicle reported.
“This is a precautionary measure that we took out of prudence and what can transpire around the world,” Walsh said.
Classes are expected to resume today. UTEP has more than 22,000 students enrolled.
Several college campuses in the state, including the University of Texas at Austin and Texas A&M University, also have ordered evacuations in recent months due to reports of threats. None of the threats has turned out to be anything threatening.