UPDATE: August 4, 2011 2:41pm
Virginia Tech announced that the campus alert has been lifted.
"Police have not received nor discovered additional information about a person possibly carrying a weapon beyond that reported this morning. The University community may resume normal campus activity. Only Blacksburg campus classes have been cancelled today," reads a statement on the school’s website.
"While the alert has been lifted, as always, we suggest that people remain vigilant and report suspicious campus activity to Virginia Tech Police at 911 or 231-6411."
At 9:37am this morning, Virginia Tech posted an alert on its website announcing that a white male carrying what appeared to be a handgun had been spotted near Dietrick Hall, a three-story dining center on campus. The administration placed the school on lockdown, effectively halting campus activities as well as construction, reports CNN.
The Virginia Tech website sent a another alert describing the initial sighting, stating that at 9:09am three juvenile camp attendees saw “a white male, six feet tall, with light brown hair outside of New Residence Hall East holding what may have been a handgun.” They noted that the weapon appeared to be covered by a cloth of some sort. The potential gunman was last seen walking quickly in the direction of the university’s volleyball courts, wearing a blue and white striped shirt, gray shorts and brown sandals.
Emergency personnel were immediately directed to the scene; however, a two-hour search conducted by both university, local, and state police has yet to reveal the potential suspect. According to The Richmond Times-Dispatch, FBI agents are also en route to Blacksburg to aid in the search.
Virginia Tech’s Campus and Workplace Violence Prevention Policy states that “university’s employees, students, and volunteers, or any visitor or other third party [on campus] are further prohibited from carrying, maintaining, or storing a firearm or weapon on any university facility, even if the owner has a valid permit.” Following the 2007 student-perpetrated shooting on campus in which 32 were killed and 25 injured, Virginia Tech’s gun policy has gained prominence in discourse about university-centric safety. For more information on the Virginia Tech massacre, click here.
As of 11:51am, individuals on Tech’s campus are directed to continue remaining indoors until further notice. The website states that "there have been no other sightings" and that the administration has "no further information to report."