Louisiana State University (LSU), in Baton Rouge, LA., evacuated its entire main campus on Monday after a bomb threat was called in this morning, officials say.
The bomb threat was received by 911 operators just after 10:30 a.m., local time. The caller did not specify any area of the campus in particular, according to LSU spokesperson Kristin Calongne.
As of 11:30am, the LSU Police Department had begun investigating the threat and University officials asked everybody on campus to evacuate "as calmly and quickly as possible."
As of 1:30pm, the University said it was still investigating and that the LSU Emergency Operations Center had been activated earlier in the day and is monitoring the situation. "Please stay off campus unless otherwise directed to return," LSU said on its Web site.
LSU posted another update on its Web site at 1:40 p.m.. It read: "All events on the LSU campus have been cancelled for the remainder of the day as LSU Police, supported by multiple law enforcement agencies, continue to investigate a bomb threat that prompted the evacuation of the LSU campus this morning. It is important for all members of the LSU community - faculty, staff and students - to remain off campus unless specifically instructed to return."
The latest updated on the University Web site was posted at about 3:30pm and said "LSU continues to investigate the bomb threat reported earlier today. The LSU Emergency Operations Center continues to monitor the situation. Please stay off campus unless otherwise directed to return."
LSU says it will continue to post updates on the official school Web site as the situation progresses and if any new information becomes available.
The Vice Chancellor of University Affairs, Herb Vincent, announced that the bomb threat had been called into the East Baton Rouge Parish 911 call center and was then transferred to the LSU Police Department. The Interim Chancellor at the school, Dr. William Jenkins, was responsible for the evacuation decision.
LSU has 30,000 students, faculty and staff located on its main campus. There are reports that traffic is extremely backed up in the area. For those individuals on campus without cars, the LSU Emergency Operations Center is providing transportation away from the school.
The Louisiana State Police say they have bomb technicians working on the campus. LSPD Capt. Doug Cain has said that police are talking to officials at the University of Texas in Austin and North Dakota State University in Fargo, which both received bomb threats this past Friday, to see if any similarities in the situations exist.