Just past noon Tuesday, students were on high alert after UH sent out a warning of a possible gunman, described as an Asian male wearing a white shirt, seen near Philip Guthrie Hoffman Hall and Agnes Arnold Hall.
The area around Philip Guthrie Hoffman Hall turned into an apparent ghost town after the incident. | Nichole Taylor/The Daily Cougar
Within the hour, students received an all clear through the emergency alert system, as the UH Police Department said the gun was, in fact, a barcode scanner.
“A community member recognized that the description fit that of an employee who was in the area and carrying a barcode scanner at the time. Once we were advised of this, we met with the employee, had the reporter make a positive ID and confirmed that there was no actual threat,” said Lieutenant Bret Collier, UHPD chief of staff.
Although the report of a gunman turned out to be false, Collier does not want this to discourage students from making reports.
“The student thought that what she saw was a real gun,” Collier said. “In this situation, she did exactly the right thing in calling the police.”
Collier said it is important for students to be aware of their surroundings and take note of details in the event they need to make a report.
“Try to be a good observer. Details are important when trying to locate a person on a busy campus, and details can make all the difference. Of course this should never come at the cost of your personal safety,” Collier said.
While students should take note of their surroundings, some wouldn’t have realized what was happening had it not been for the alert.
“When the alert was sent, I was sitting in my biology class that is located in Agnes Arnold auditorium,” said biology and anthropology freshman Guadalupe Orozco. “The people in my class were nervous but (stayed) calm.”
The quick response of the police and the media is what surprised Orozco.
“I was relieved to know it wasn’t a real gunman, but somewhat surprised to how quickly local media aired the story of the alleged gunman,” Orozco said.
