Wording not preserved
A initial alert message is documented at this point in the sequence, but its exact wording is not preserved in the public record. The public edition displays only confirmed alert text.
Averett
Emailed threat locks down both campuses for three hours; determined to be a hoax
AI-generated · every claim is source-linkedConfirmed HoaxDetermined to be a hoax. The institutional response is documented because it reveals how the alert system performed under a perceived real threat.
On Saturday, January 23, 2021, Averett University in Danville, Virginia placed its Main and North campuses on lockdown after receiving a threatening email around 11:15 a.m. EST that made a general threat toward the university. Danville Police secured both campuses while investigators traced the message, and the lockdown was lifted at about 2:30 p.m. EST. The same emailed-hoax wave hit Hampden-Sydney College and Central Virginia Community College the same day.
- Alerts
- 2
- Response
- —
- Killed
- —
- Injured
- —
~850 students
Documented Timeline
Alert Sequence
2 messages in sequence · 1 verified verbatim
Some messages in this sequence are documented (their existence, timing, and channel are sourced) but their exact wording is not preserved in the public record. Those entries appear as placeholders; only confirmed text is displayed.
Verified verbatimWFXR and WSLS both report this as the verbatim @AverettU1859 Twitter post lifting the lockdown on January 23, 2021, around 2:30 p.m. EST128 chars
UPDATE: The lockdown has been lifted. Please read this message for more information, and watch the LiveSafe app for any updates.
Verbatim text confirmed: WFXR and WSLS both quote this as the @AverettU1859 Twitter update that lifted the lockdown around 2:30 p.m. EST on January 23, 2021.
The tweet directed recipients to 'read this message for more information' and check the LiveSafe app, indicating a fuller all-clear was distributed via a separate notification or email.
This is the genuine all-clear, lifting the lockdown approximately three hours after the threat email was received at roughly 11:15 a.m. EST.
Context
Background
Averett University is a small private Baptist-heritage institution of roughly 850 students in Danville, Virginia, with a Main Campus and a separate North Campus. On Saturday, January 23, 2021, the university received a threatening email at about 11:15 a.m. EST that made a general threat, and it placed both campuses on lockdown. Danville Police responded to both sites while investigators worked to trace the message, and the lockdown was lifted around 2:30 p.m. EST with no indication the threat was legitimate. The episode was part of the same emailed-hoax wave that locked down Hampden-Sydney College and Central Virginia Community College that Saturday, a pattern that previewed the much larger swatting and emailed-threat surges campuses would face later in the decade.
Analysis
Key Findings
A general-threat email locked down both of Averett's campuses for roughly three hours on a Saturday with few people present
The same hoax template reached Hampden-Sydney College and Central Virginia Community College the same day, January 23, 2021
Danville Police found no credible threat and lifted the lockdown around 2:30 p.m. EST
Outcome
Police found no indication the threat was legitimate. The lockdown was lifted around 2:30 p.m. EST and the email was part of a hoax campaign that targeted several Virginia schools the same Saturday.
Provenance
Sources
- News
- News
- News
- Official
Cite this case
Campus Alert Archive. "Averett University: Emailed threat locks down both campuses for three hours; determined to be a hoax." Incident of January 23, 2021. Added May 2026; last updated July 2026. https://campusalertarchive.com/case/averett-university-emailed-threat-lockdown-2021-01-23/
Alert text quoted on this page remains the work of the issuing institution; the archive is a secondary source.
Tags
emailed-threatlockdownvirginiaprivate-universitydanvilleemergency-notificationhoaxHoax
Added May 2026Updated July 2026Via ingestion