Police investigated a bomb threat at UWM-Waukesha
WAUKESHA - A bomb scare Thursday at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee at Waukesha proved false quickly enough, but not before disrupting the small number of students and staff still on the campus in the late afternoon.
Waukesha police confirmed that a call to dispatchers at about 3:30 p.m., stating that a suspicious package believed to be a bomb was found in a classroom, was false. A sweep of the building and campus, 1500 N. University Drive revealed nothing suspicious.
At least a half dozen squad vehicles and several Waukesha Fire Department emergency vehicles were dispatched.
In a news release, Waukesha Police Lt. David Daily said authorities worked closely with UWM-Waukesha administration staff, who informed them that students were still inside some classrooms. They were evacuated quickly as the sweep began room by room.
Regardless, the day ended early for those who remained as police cleared the scene an hour later. Daily said staff and students were allowed back into the building to retrieve their belongings
Two staff members standing just inside the doorway of the campus' Continuing Education center told a reporter they were told to close up and head home for the day.
No one was hurt during the quick evacuation, police said, adding the investigation is continuing.
A series of similar threats — all determined not to be credible — were reported at colleges throughout the state on Thursday. Technical schools in Sturgeon Bay, Menomonie and Eau Claire, the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, and the Wisconsin Technical College Systems office in Madison reported bomb threats.
Contact Jim Riccioli at (262) 446-6635 or james.riccioli@jrn.com. Follow him on Twitter at @jariccioli.
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: UWM-Waukesha bomb threat not credible, police say
