Harvard Police Respond to Bomb Threat at Memorial Hall, Shelter-in-Place Order Lifted

The Harvard University Police Department responded to a bomb threat at Memorial Hall Monday morning, prompting the University to issue a shelter-in-place order for people near the building.

Harvard sent an emergency alert around 8:45 a.m., instructing affiliates near Memorial Hall to shelter in place and telling others to avoid the area until further notice.

HUPD lifted the shelter-in-place order at around 9:20 a.m., but advised affiliates to continue avoiding Memorial Hall and the nearby Zimmer Hall plaza. In another message 15 minutes later, affiliates were advised to continue avoiding Zimmer Hall plaza.

Students were blocked from entering Memorial Hall Monday morning as police and emergency personnel responded to the threat and established a perimeter around the building. In a 10:05 a.m. alert, HUPD said Memorial Hall remained closed and told affiliates to continue avoiding the area, adding that another update would come “within the hour.”

As of 10:18 a.m., HUPD also closed Memorial Church, which sits inside Harvard Yard, “out of an abundance of caution.”

HUPD spokesperson Steven G. Catalano did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the building’s closure.

Some classes in adjacent Zimmer Hall continued as scheduled Monday morning, while others were canceled due to the threat. LPS A: “Foundational Chemistry and Biology,” a large introductory life sciences course that meets at 9 a.m., was canceled at 9:24 a.m. because of HUPD’s warning to avoid the plaza, according to an announcement to students.

Classes held at 10:30 a.m. were also disrupted. Students in Econ 10A: “Introduction to Microeconomics,” which meets in Sanders Theatre in Memorial Hall, were told the class would be held remotely because of the order to avoid the area. SOC 1156: “Statistics for Social Studies,” which meets in William James Hall about a block from Memorial Hall, was also canceled due to the threat.

Students in ECON 1010A: “Intermediate Microeconomics,” held in Zimmer Hall at 10:30 a.m., were told 10 minutes before class that lecture would continue as normal because the building “is not closed.”

Memorial Hall adjoins Annenberg Hall, the College’s first-year dining hall, and is centrally located between Harvard Yard and Zimmer Hall. Students in Annenberg were evacuated Monday morning, and the building remained closed.

Cambridge Police Department spokesperson Jennie Lopez wrote in a 9:43 a.m. statement that CPD was assisting HUPD with a sweep of Memorial Hall and that HUPD is “leading the investigation.”

Students riding Harvard shuttles when the threat was reported were told to avoid Memorial Hall, and shuttle service near the building was halted, according to two students riding the shuttles.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

—Staff writer Shawn A. Boehmer can be reached at [email protected] and on Signal at shawnb.18. Follow him on X @ShawnBoehmer.

—Staff writer Claire A. Michal can be reached at [email protected] and on Signal at ClaireMichal.154.