The Texas Tech College of Media & Communication was evacuated at about 11:45 Friday morning because of a reported bomb threat. Students and faculty were let back into the building about 12:20 p.m.
Four police vehicles were in the COMC parking lot. Traffic on 15th street near the building was also blocked off. Nicolas Lopez/The Hub@TTU
Lynnlee Harrell, senior office assistant in the College of Media & Communication, heard someone loudly yell “There is a bomb!” in a hallway on the first floor. Other staff members on the first floor report hearing the yell as well, saying it was loud enough to get attention. Staff members of the Dean’s Office then reported the threat to the Texas Tech Police Department.
One employee reported seeing members of the Texas Tech Police Department running through the halls in the basement, carrying assault rifles as the fire alarm initially started going off. Students said they did not take the alarm seriously until they got outside and saw the four police cars in the parking lot.
Sydney Carpenter, a sophomore journalism major, said she was not sure whether the alarm was serious until an officer with an assault rifle told her and a friend to leave immediately.
Students and faculty waited outside for around 35 minutes while the building was searched. Nicolas Lopez/The Hub@TTU
Students and faculty were instructed to stand across the street, as far away from the building as possible. One communication instructor, Jeremy Torrez, instructed students to go home, saying there was no point in hanging around.
No one from the Lubbock Police Department or the bomb squad was present. According to a Texas Tech police officer, the Lubbock Police Department does not have jurisdiction over Texas Tech buildings and was therefore not called out.
There was no official Tech Alert issued, but Texas Tech did tweet about the investigation nearly 20 minutes after the building had been initially evacuated.
Chris Cook, managing director of communications and marketing at Texas Tech, said in an email to The Hub@TTU that a Tech Alert was not issued because the threat was deemed false soon after police arrived on the scene, causing no need to notify students and faculty.
This has happened at least once before. After a 2008 bomb threat, Texas Tech was criticized for not notifying students and faculty of the risk, according to a Lubbock Avalanche-Journal article.
Cook said he was impressed with how quickly the Texas Tech Police Department responded.
Police on the scene were carrying assault rifles. Nicolas Lopez/The Hub@TTU
“Our Tech PD does a nice job of responding, which is something that’s very important for safety,” Cook said. “The security of our faculty and students and staff is paramount. They did a wonderful job of ensuring that safety is maintained.”
This post will be updated as more information becomes available.
Weston Davis, Laura Duclos and Nicolas Lopez contributed to this report.
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