Taking direction from a text message was all students and staff…
Students walk in the rain as they evacuate from the University of Texas following a bomb threat from a caller claiming to be with al-Qaida (Casey James/KXAN)
Taking direction from a text message was all students and staff…
University of Texas students are trying to get their day back to normal -- even with …
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Updated: Friday, 14 Sep 2012, 2:30 PM CDT
Published : Friday, 14 Sep 2012, 9:55 AM CDT
AUSTIN (KXAN) - Classes at the University of Texas are canceled for Friday following a bomb threat from a caller claiming to be with al-Qaida who said he placed bombs all over campus.
Campus officials have also said buildings may be re-entered at noon and that all other activities would resume at 5 p.m.
Around 11 a.m. UT officials sent out a text message via their emergency alerts system that the time specified for bombs to go off had since passed.
UT Director of Communications Rhonda Weldon said the university got a call around 8:35 a.m. from a male with a Middle Eastern accent claiming to have placed bombs all over campus. That's when campus officials began the campuswide evacuation.
"Immediately evacuate ALL buildings and get as far away as possible," read a message posted at 9:53 a.m. on the campus' emergency alert website. "More information to come."
The caller said said he was with al-Qaida and that these bombs would go off in 90 minutes, which would have timed out about 10 a.m.
President William Powers had been notified, and that's when officials began the evacuation out of an abundance of caution.
North Dakota State University has also received a similar bomb threat, prompting an evacuation Friday morning. The university released the following alert at 9:49 a.m.
"NDSU is requiring all employees and students to leave campus by 10:15 a.m. This includes residence hall students, who, if necessary, should walk to locations off campus. This also includes the downtown buildings and agricultural facilities."