Univ. of Central Florida Shut Down after Bombs Found

18 Mar, 2013

The University of Central Florida closed its main campus in Orlando on Monday morning while police investigated an apparent suicide and a number of bombs found in a residence hall, the school said.

Campus police received a fire alarm and then a 911 emergency call “regarding a man with a gun” early Monday morning, according to the university, which is one of the largest in the United States.

When police officers arrived, they found the body of a male student with an apparently self-inflicted gunshot wound and closed the seven-story residence hall. Police found a handgun, an assault weapon and a bag containing explosives in the student’s room, said university spokesman Grant Heston.

At 2:09 a.m., police sent students a text message alert that the residential Tower 1 dormitory, home to about 500 students, would be evacuated due to a “suspicious death.”

Another text alert at 2:46 a.m. reassured residents that there was no threat.

“It was clear at that point that there was no imminent threat from a live shooter, which is the first thing you worry about,” Heston said.

The Orange County Sheriff’s bomb squad was on campus, and the FBI was assisting the university’s police department.

Reuters

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