A handwritten bomb threat found on campus Wednesday sparked a nearly five-hour evacuation of UF’s New Engineering Building — though no evidence of explosives was found.
The note, found inside the women’s bathroom on the first floor of the building, prompted an immediate response from University Police, who swept the building with police dogs at about 11 a.m., UPD Capt. Jeff Holcomb said.
After no bomb was found, UPD reopened the building at about 3 p.m., while UF canceled all classes at the building for the remainder of the day.
A perimeter set up to block traffic on Center Drive was taken down at about 2 p.m., allowing buses and cars to pass.
Adjacent buildings, including Larsen Hall and Benton Hall, were not evacuated.
Holcomb said officers would collect any evidence found to identify the person who wrote the note. The last time there was a bomb threat on campus was at least a year ago, he said.
“It’s very rare,” Holcomb said.
For Marcy Lee, a program assistant who works in the building, news of the threat worried her. In her 25 years at UF, she said she has never experienced such a threat.
“I just know that they have to take these things seriously,” the 47-year-old said. “Hopefully it’s just a hoax.”
Christina Torres, 37, who works in the University Police training division, directs traffic on Center Drive on Wednesday morning after a bomb threat emerged from the New Engineering Building. According to an email UF sent to students on Wednesday, classes were canceled in that building for the remainder of the day to evaluate the credibility of the threat.
