(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of The Augusta Press.)
As I was sitting in class on Augusta University’s Summerville Campus on Tuesday, Jan. 31, I was completely unaware of a bomb threat being investigated by campus police in Science Hall.
Opinion
Somewhere between 1:30 p.m. and 2 p.m., a faculty member found a handwritten note threatening the building with a bomb and immediately notified the university police. After a security sweep by police, nothing suspicious was found, but afternoon classes in the Science building were canceled in an abundance of caution, but students in those classes weren’t told why.
It wasn’t until about four hours later, when the university sent out a school-wide email that anyone was even alerted about the threat.
The police department said Richmond County’s bomb squad was not contacted because the Science Hall’s labs and classrooms are, for the most part, locked down with limited access without faculty supervision.
However, the next morning there were whispers and rumors about the possibility of a student writing the note in order to get an exam postponed – though no proof has been provided.
With an emptier parking lot than usual and several faculty upset about the handling of the threat, a few biology and ecology classes were canceled on Wednesday, Feb. 1. Some professors were still nervous.
Jessica M. Reichmuth, associate professor from the Department of Biological Sciences, said she understood why some professors and students wanted to stay home with family. She said she knew people were afraid. Reichmuth, as well as several other school employees, said she wished AU police had been more open about the bomb threat.
Some professors and students hypothesized that the police department didn’t issue an official warning because they wanted to prevent mass panic, but others argued that it was wrong not to make people aware of the possible danger.
“We were all really confused. There was a lot of faculty contacting other faculty to figure out what was going on,” Reichmuth said. “I feel like AU police could have sent out an alert written in a way that still would have prevented mass panic.”
Nursing students Afreen Salewala and Leah Mihelick said they had no knowledge of the threat until much later when the email was sent out.
“My class was canceled, but I didn’t know why,” Salewala said. “It must’ve happened right after [Mihelick’s] class, because her class was around 1 p.m. until like 2 p.m., and my class is at 2:30 p.m.”
Mihelick said she was studying in the Summerville’s Reese Library when she received the email and was shocked to know a possible bomb could have gone off not too far from where she was located.
“Something like this happened at my high school more than once, which is kind of sad, and I understand people not wanting to go to class today because of feelings regarding the safety issue,” said Lotem Kol, a student double majoring in psychology and cell and molecular biology.
Kol also said he heard about the bomb hours prior to the email – through a popular pseudonymous social media app that allows those in a five-mile radius to interact online.
“I found out about it on Yik Yak before anybody from the school said anything about it,” said Kol.
In addition to the Tuesday security sweep and search, and with no one yet apprehended in the ongoing investigation, police were also reported to be present on the Summerville campus on Feb. 1 to ensure student and faculty protection.
“I don’t know what they did yesterday to search the school, but they said everything was fine. So, I’m assuming they took enough precautions to feel safe about students entering the building again,” said Kol.
Salewala, Mihelick and Kol said they could understand both sides of the situation and were not sure what the right answer or approach should have been.
But Mihelick, who had class the following day in the Science Hall, said she had one professor discuss campus and student resources that were available for those struggling to deal with the aftermath of the bomb situation.
Student Madison Keel, a communication major whose astronomy class was canceled as a result of the threat, said she found the situation frustrating because the email was sent out hours after the threat first occurred. As a student who lives on-campus, Keel said she was concerned at the delayed release of information regarding her safety.
“I truly think that Augusta University could have handled it better. Either with giving the students just a better heads up, or … just delivering the information better,” she said. “That’s a pretty scary situation to just come into your email.”
Another faculty member, who did not want to go on record, said he was disappointed at how the situation was handled. According to him, back when the college was known as Augusta State University, the police department made transparency a priority.
“We had bomb threats back then, too, but we knew about it through phone calls. Nobody panicked – we were just aware,” he said. “I just think it’s a shame that all this money goes towards the training and communication apps, just for it all to be thrown out the window for the sake of ‘not wanting to cause mass panic.’”
So, with students and faculty initially none the wiser to a possible threat, a question arises – is it better to be safe and warn students and faculty, or should police take the risk of not informing them in order to prevent mass panic?
Meanwhile, in the midst of all the panic and confusion for those in the Science Hall, I sat unaware in the next building over, and had no idea that there was a possibility of being immediate danger.
When I found out about the news hours later, I must admit I was faced with mixed feelings of panic and anger. Panic at the thought of an ongoing the threat and my ignorance to it, and anger at the idea of no one warning dozens of staff and students.
Despite the officers best efforts to ease everyone’s worries and fears, it still seemed to me that ‘hiding’ the information from the vast public robbed people of the option to leave, and get to safety. Perhaps minor panic and overcautiousness is better than taking the risk of several students and faculty being possibly injured, or even killed.
With AU police treating the case as an ongoing investigation, no further information is being released at this time, and the suspect is believed to still be at large.
To report any additional information about the case, AU PD requests students, faculty and parents to call: (706) – 721 2911.
Liz Wright is a staff writer covering education, lifestyle and general assignments for The Augusta Press. Reach her at liz@theaugustapress.com
