By Nate West
News Editor
A suspicious package in the north entrance way of the Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts caused a local-area evacuation on Monday, Oct. 7.
“Shortly after 2 p.m., Safety & Security received a call from a Quick Center employee to report that a person, (wearing a hoodie and unable to be identified) entered the North Quick Center and dropped a backpack off in the entrance way,” Vito Czyz, director of the Office of Safety and Security, said.
According to Czyz, the person then exited the building and ran in an easterly direction. Safety and Security officers responded to the scene and contacted the Cattaraugus County Sheriff’s Department
“(They began) a local-area evacuation. Pedestrian traffic on the north side of the building was blocked off, and personnel were asked to take an alternate route to their destination,” Czyz said.
First responders from the sheriff’s department determined that the backpack was not dangerous and gave an all clear. An E2 campus text alert was sent out as a precaution to notify the campus community.
Afterwards, a student returned to the Quick Center to retrieve the backpack and was interviewed by the Cattaraugus County Sheriff’s Department and Safety and Security personnel. It was determined no crime or foul play had occurred. The student was released with the bag and its contents.
The Office of Safety and Security has protocol in place when events like this take place, and followed it closely during Monday’s events.
“If a quick determination cannot be made as to what its contents are, where it came from, who placed it and whether it is a danger to the community, a local perimeter should be established based on law enforcement guidelines.” Czyz said. “No one is allowed to handle the package, and law enforcement is notified. These guidelines are reviewed on an annual basis.”
