Classes will resume

as normal on Tuesday.
By Lisa Chmelecki
Staff Writer

LEWISTON – Central Maine Community College was evacuated Monday morning after the school received a bomb threat.

At the request of police, school officials declined to say whether the threat came by letter, phone call or some other means.

They simply said that the threat came at about 11 a.m., at which point school officials evacuated every classroom and office on the Auburn campus.

Students were told that the campus would be closed until the following day, and local police and firefighters were stationed at the Turner Street entrance for the most of the day to inform arriving students as they showed up for classes.

Police and fire officials searched the college’s three main buildings. No bomb was found.

Annee Tara, a spokesperson for the college, said college officials plan to work with police to find the person who is responsible for the threat, then make sure that he or she is prosecuted.

“This is a very serious matter,” Tara said. “It is a crime, and we’re going to prosecute it to the fullest extent of the law.”

According to Tara, some students – especially those who travel from other cities and towns – were frustrated by the entire situation and angry with the person responsible.

The college has 1,800 enrolled students, and Tara estimated that about half were scheduled to be on campus Monday.

It is believed to be the first bomb scare in the college’s history, she said.

Central Maine Community College, formerly Central Maine Technical College, is expected to open Tuesday morning with classes running on schedule.

lchmelecki@sunjournal.com

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