NCCU Among At Least Seven HBCU’s Receiving Bomb Threats Tuesday

DURHAM, NC – North Carolina Central University (NCCU) Police Department received a call regarding the threat of a bomb on campus at approximately 5:30 p.m., on Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2022. NCCU was one of at least seven Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) that received a bomb threat yesterday.

Bomb threats were reported at Howard University in Washington, D.C., Norfolk State University in Virginia, the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluffs (UAPB), Florida Memorial University, North Carolina Central University (NCCU), Xavier University in Louisiana, and Prairie View A&M University in Texas.

Xavier University reported a bomb threat around 3 p.m. on Tuesday, according to local outlet NOLA.com. That was followed by threats made at UAPB, Prairie View A&M, and NCCU around 5 p.m., per tweets and statements from the schools.

Florida Memorial University staff then announced at 7:35 p.m. that the school had received a bomb threat, according to an email shared on Twitter.

In accordance with its procedures, the NCCU campus was immediately placed on lockdown and alert notifications were issued to students and employees. The Durham Police Department, Durham County Sheriff’s Office, Fire Department, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Durham City/County Emergency Management, as well as North Carolina State University and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Police Departments, worked with NCCU Police Department to ensure that all buildings were cleared for the safe return of students, faculty, and staff. An all-clear was issued at 9:15 p.m.

NCCU students that were temporarily relocated off-campus were transported back to their residence halls.

Norfolk State and Howard also reported that they had received threats. Both colleges confirmed on Twitter that their campuses had been given the all-clear by Tuesday night.

Norfolk State officials announced on Twitter that students had been “secured in a hotel and dorms remain closed until 8 AM Wednesday.”

The threats appear to have been unfounded, with no universities reporting an actual bomb, suspicious package, or attack as of Wednesday morning.