OLYMPIA, Wash. — UPDATE: The Evergreen State College in Olympia re-opened at 3 p.m. Monday after a sporadic off-and-on five day shutdown that rattled nerves on campus. The emergency closure followed a call to 911 Thursday, June 1 in which a man threatened to execute people at the school.
On Monday the campus was deserted. Only a few students could be seen crossing Red Square at the heart of the school's grounds. About 900 students live in dorms at Evergreen full time. They were not ordered to leave campus.
Having classes canceled again had some students frustrated.
“Especially being finals week,” Landon Primrose said; he needed access to school labs to complete his work.
“I know that safety is there No. 1 concern, but I also think it’s important to keep the institution open. Otherwise you’re just capitulating to the demands of terrorists,” he added.
It was the threatening 911 call Thursday morning that caused an emergency evacuation at Evergreen.
“I’m gonna murder as many people on that campus as I can,” the caller told a 911 operator.
Evergreen Police Services, backed by the Thurston County Sheriff's Office, are investigating but few details have been released.
Normal operations had resumed on Saturday, then on Sunday night school officials ordered a Monday shutdown after what is being called new information about an external threat.
“It was closed today just out of an abundance of caution,” school spokesperson Zach Powers said.
Classes were expected to resume on a normal schedule on Tuesday. In addition to campus police, Washington State Patrol troopers will be patrolling school grounds providing additional security.
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The Evergreen State College’s Olympia campus will be closed and on "suspended operations" Monday as a precaution while law enforcement officials work to review new "external threat information" received over the weekend.
In a press release, the school said “suspended operations” means classes will not be held Monday, including evening classes. Evergreen staff will be present to provide campus services to resident students and to ensure their safety.
Law enforcement is active on campus at all hours.
A determination on when to fully re-open the campus will be made as soon as possible.
“Even though we had planned to be back in class on Monday, it’s important to give law enforcement an opportunity to evaluate their new information,“ Sandra Kaiser, vice president for college relations at Evergreen, said in a press release provided by the school Sunday.
The campus was evacuated Thursday and remained closed on Friday in response to a “violent threat against the college received by local law enforcement,” according to the school.
Cox Media Group
