UPDATE: A half hour after its first public safety alert, FAMU issued another notice: “Update on Police Activity, Bragg Stadium, FAMU Villages, Gaither Gymnasium Complex, Gaither Office & Classroom, Rattler Pointe A: All clear. Please return to normal operations.” There was no explanation.
Lt. Damon Miller, a watch commander at the Tallahassee Police Department, said they received a call about an active shooter – but there is no active shooter.
There was a robot competition going on and people confused the sounds of the robots for gunshots, he told the FSView/Florida Flambeau. He added that the PIO (public information officer) would be releasing a statement.
At the same time that FAMU was issuing the all clear, TPD took to social media and posted: “Multiple law enforcement agencies responding to reports of a possible incident on FAMU campus.”
ORIGINAL STORY: Florida A&M University has issued a “shelter in place” warning as police activity is ongoing near FAMU Villages and Bragg Stadium.
“Please avoid area as a law enforcement presence is in the area,” the university wrote on social media and through its campus wide safety alert at 1 p.m. “Shelter in place.”
The city’s online crime map does not correlate perfectly but shows a call for an “open carry of weapon” in the area of Lake Bradford Road and FAMU Way at 12:11 p.m.
A TPD spokesperson said the agency had no additional information and a watch commander is on the scene. She said she had no indications shots were fired. There were no other details immediately available.
A FAMU spokesperson, when asked to provide information about any incident, said “Not at this time.”
The alert comes one day before the 1-year mark of the mass shooting at Florida State University, in which two were killed and others injured.
The last time FAMU put out a “shelter in place alert” was two weeks ago when four people were injured in a mass shooting near the campus.
Shots were fired at a house party near the Bond Community that injured a woman and three men. Police said their preliminary investigation indicated there were multiple shooters, as previously reported.
This is a developing story. Check back for details.
