Bomb threats delay exams

News Department
Two false bomb threats called in at York University Dec. 19 and Dec. 20 have delayed fall term examinations, and York students and administrators are not pleased.
“Plain and simply, it’s public mischief,” said Keith Marnoch, York University spokesperson. “If we’re able to identify who is involved in these [bomb threats], we would prosecute them to the fullest extent [of the law].”
The most recent bomb threat was called in around 3 p.m. Dec. 20 and led to an immediate evacuation of Vari Hall and the Curtis Lecture Hall, according to police. Exams resumed at 4 p.m. after Toronto police and firefighters searched the buildings. No bomb was found.
About 500 students, faculty and staff were evacuated from Curtis Lecture Hall around 11 a.m. Dec. 19 after York security received a bomb threat, their first during this exam period. The building was cleared out, and was declared safe around 12:30 p.m. Exams resumed after no bomb was found.
Shobhi Francis-Xavier, a fifth-year science and technology major, was one of the students whose exam was postponed following an evacuation Dec. 13, when a fire shut down York’s steam generators and left the university cold. Her rescheduled exam was disrupted by the Dec. 19 bomb threat.

“It was unfortunate what took place last week [Dec. 13], but today’s incident just pushed the limit,” said Francis-Xavier. “If it were one of the few times that York University had to face fire alarms, I could have been more understanding but for the years I’ve spent at York University, this has been a recurring issue.”
Francis-Xavier thinks the administration could have handled these threats better. “I don’t believe any serious action had been taken over false alarms and bomb threats.”
According to Marnoch, it costs the university $1,000 each time York receives a bomb threat, money the university could be spending elsewhere.
Bomb threats affect not only York students, he added, but the community surrounding York, too, because police and fire services have to be diverted from those areas.
York is working with the police to investigate these bomb threats.
The website for York University security advises anyone on the receiving end of a bomb threat call to take note of possible clues that could lead to identifying the person and to call York’s security control centre at 416-736-2100 ext. 33333.