After barely recovering from their first deadly shooting, students at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill were alerted to an “armed and dangerous person on campus” yesterday, September 13, at around 1 p.m. The lockdown ended a little more than an hour later when the suspect was taken into custody and students were cleared to leave their shelters.
Before 1 p.m. yesterday, university police were told to “be on the lookout for a suspect in an incident at Alpine Bagel at the UNC Student Union,” after reports were made about someone brandishing a gun in the university’s student union. Though there were no injuries or deaths, the event understandably brought up anxieties from the on-campus shooting on Aug 28.
Less than three weeks ago, UNC students went on lockdown for three hours as graduate student Talei Qi walked the Caudill Laboratories with a firearm, where he killed his former professor, Zijie Yan. In the aftermath of both incidents, students have reported feeling “lost” or “scared,” and some are taking the opportunity to advocate for stricter gun laws.
UNC Chancellor Kevin M. Guskiewicz sent a letter to students addressing the situation, thanking the professional response of university faculty, and extending resources to students struggling with the events. Despite the support of staff, parents, and the surrounding community, the future of the investigations and campus security at UNC remain uncertain.
