Perhaps a sign of the times we live in, NEIU students were greeted on their first day back to class with a bomb threat. On Monday, Jan. 12, 2009, a man approached the reference desk on the first floor of the library and told one of the librarians that his friend was about to enter the building and “blow it up.” The librarian was able to attract the attention of a colleague, who called the campus police, while she continued to listen to his vague threats. The police responded within minutes, apprehended the man and at 12:32 p.m. gave the order to evacuate the building.
According to Chief Lyon, the department followed standard procedures that had been in place long before the campus shootings at NIU and Virginia Tech. The Chicago Police Dept. was called in and a thorough search of the building was conducted under the direct supervision of the CPD watch commander. Patrons and staff were allowed back into the library after about 40 minutes.
During that time, an NEIU officer conducted an interview with the person of interest, whereupon it was found that his threat was not legitimate. He was then taken into psychiatric care at Swedish Covenant Hospital.
The man was not a NEIU student, yet apparently had aspirations of working at the campus library. The smell of alcohol was also detected on his breath. As of this story’s submission, the man has not yet been charged with any crime. However, Chief Lyon was considering charging the man with disorderly conduct in order to cover the university’s legal bases in case the man does return to campus. He was, however, given a “trespass” citation and banned from all NEIU campuses. It is not known if he has a past history of similar disruptions, nor could the librarian who spoke with him be reached for comment.
Chief Lyon stressed that this was an “uncommon situation,” and was the first bomb threat he had personally experienced since coming to work at NEIU more than three years ago. Ironically, he also mentioned that the Emergency Management Team had met with library staff and administration officials only days before the incident took place, and that the EMT was going from building to building working out evacuation or ‘hold in place’ (as in the case of a tornado) plans with the various departments.
He also cited the Physical Education building as the department most prepared for emergencies. They have conducted numerous drills in the past and have their exit paths and signage thoroughly worked out.