University Building Evacuated After Bomb Threat

Friday - Local law enforcement evacuated and swept Elrod Commons on the Washington and Lee University Thursday night after a “concerning message regarding a possible explosive device” was posted on the anonymous social media platform YikYak.

According to a message sent out the W&L community by President Will Dudley early Friday morning, the sweep took several hours and did not uncover “anything of concern.” After determining that the message was a false alarm, the building reopened at 5:30 a.m.

“We take the safety of our campus very seriously and work closely with local and state law enforcement to monitor potential threats,” said Dudley. “In this case, the initial message was reported by YikYak to the FBI, who alerted local law enforcement to initiate an investigation. The information obtained from YikYak led law enforcement to question the W&L student who was believed to have generated the post, and it was determined that there was no threat to the community.

“This situation, like any security threat to our campus — even those intended in jest — will be investigated and handled according to the laws of the commonwealth and Washington and Lee’s disciplinary procedures,” said Dudley.