For the fourteenth time since
1995, classes at Las Positas were disrupted last week by a bomb
scare. The alarm sounded around 1 p.m. on May 10, but the evacuation
took place slowly, with some classroom teachers ignoring the
warning for as long as 20 minutes.
“When I left, there were still teachers in the classroom,”
said student Jay Christian. “When the staff doesn’t
know what’s going on, there’s a problem.”
Jay stayed with friends in the student union for several minutes
after the alarm sounded, until an administrator finally came
around to give the evacuation order.
Many students, who waited outside the campus entrances for
one and a half hours while the campus was searched by security,
Livermore police and administration officials, were unsure what
to do when the alarm went off.
Linda Quach, who has been on campus for six semesters as a
worker at the food truck, said students didn’t react, just
as they hadn’t during all the other scares she has witnessed.
“Nobody moved,” Quach said. “All the students
were just standing there.”
Teachers are responsible only for their own classrooms, while
it is the administrations job to make sure other students are
given the proper instructions.
Richard Butler, LPC’s new director of safety and security,
admitted the evacuation was somewhat disorganized and blamed
a recent spate of false alarms Ð due to construction Ð
for the students’ and staffs’ casual attitude. Still,
Butler disapproved when hearing reports of teacher unresponsiveness.
“That’s not appropriate,” he said. “In
line with what happened in Colorado, you have to take things
more seriously.”
Any decision to evacuate must be made by an administrator.
In this case it was Dee Roshong, dean of student services, who,
after hearing the details from security said “do it.”
Ed Maduli, vice-president of business services, said evacuation
is up to the discretion of whichever administrator happens to
take the call. If specific information about the bomb’s
supposed location is given, or if the call is an obvious hoax,
there may be no, or only partial, evacuation.
Student John Mulholland, who didn’t know the specifics
of the threat, said he thought it was unnecessary to evacuate
all the students all the way to the parking lot.
“It’s a prank, a college prank,” he said. If
the administration is going to evacuate, however, Mulholland
said they need to teach students what to do, and not rely on
the instructions posted in most classrooms.
“It sits there on the wall,” he said. “Nobody
bothers to teach it.”
The evacuation map, while confusing to some, has students
and teachers gather in locations well away from any buildings.
Officer Dean Dennis, who was one of five Livermore police
officers who arrived in three squad cars after the evacuation,
said he would have liked to see everyone moved farther away from
the buildings. Some students and faculty were on the perimeter
sidewalk, which in places is only six feet from classrooms.
“They were kind of close,” Dennis said. “But
the school was handling it.”
Butler said once an evacuation is ordered people are responsible
to some degree for their own safety, and that during a bomb scare
it is prudent to be well away from campus buildings.
“I would say at least 100 yards,” Butler said. “Debris
can carry that far.”
Many students, however, didn’t know the reason for the
evacuation; the alarm for fire and bomb scares are identical.
Students Connie Ellis and Veronica Lara-Lopez, who were in
the Student Union when the alarm sounded, said they thought the
order to evacuate should have happened sooner, and when it did
happen, they should have been given the reason for it.
“They just told us to get out,” Ellis said. “They
didn’t tell us why.” Lara-Lopez was more upset for
not being able to do her homework than fear of a real bomb. Still,
she said the evacuation wasn’t handled professionally.
“Get a grip,” she said about those in charge. “[The
evacuation] should be immediate.”
Math teacher Dale Boercker said of all the bomb scares she’s
seen, she’s never witnessed such a thorough search, but
bemoaned the disruption of her algebra class. Undaunted, she
continued to help students with their assignments on the sidewalk
and in the parking lot.
“It’s very frustrating because it’s the last
week of class and these students have a test on Friday,”
Boercker said.
Officer Dennis, food truck worker Linda Quach and many students
and faculty said the timing of the bomb scare was suspicious.
“This happens every year around finals time,” Dennis
said. While Dennis said the police department always takes threats
seriously, the recent massacre in Colorado was a reminder of
what can happen anytime, anywhere.
“It was a wake up call,” he said.
Butler said the problem is most people don’t take bomb
scares seriously, even if there is a full evacuation.
“They smile and try and work their way back on campus,”
he said.
While Butler said he doesn’t want to thank the person
who called in the threat -- a female who reported her brother’s
friend had planted four bombs -- he said the scare was a learning
experience.
“It helped in terms of us getting our act together --
but we would have preferred a drill,” he said.