Campus Alert Archive
UConn

"A Bomb Is Going To Go Off in the Climbing Center": Sticky-Note Threat Empties UConn Rec During Collegiate Climbing Competition

CTbomb threatemergency notificationmedium confidence
UnfoundedNo evidence of an actual threat was found. The institutional response is documented because the alert communication is identical to what would occur during a real incident.

On Sunday, March 9, 2025, the UConn Student Recreation Center on the Storrs campus was evacuated after a neon-green sticky note reading "A bomb is going to go off in the Climbing Center" was discovered during a collegiate climbing competition. UConn Police and Connecticut State Police evacuated and swept the building; no device was found. The Rec Center reopened the following morning at 6 AM EDT.

Alerts
2
Response
—
Killed
0
Injured
0
Institution
University of Connecticut
Public R1 · CT
~32,000 studentsUConnALERT
Confirmed Timeline

Alert Sequence

2 messages in sequence

Some alert texts below are approximate reconstructions from news coverage, not confirmed verbatim transcripts. Reconstructed texts are shown in italic with a dashed border. Verified verbatim texts have a solid border and are marked accordingly.

INITIAL ALERTSMS
Approximate reconstructionReconstructed from NBC Connecticut and Fox 61 coverage citing the UConnALERT phrasing212 chars
UConnALERT: A potentially hazardous condition is being investigated at the Student Recreation Center on the Storrs campus. Please evacuate the building immediately and stay clear of the area until further notice.

This text has been reconstructed from news coverage and may not reflect the exact original wording.

NBC Connecticut's headline 'Potentially hazardous condition under investigation at UConn in Storrs' mirrors the wording UConn uses in its alerts before a threat is confirmed
UConn's standard practice is to use 'potentially hazardous condition' language for unverified threats rather than name a bomb explicitly — a deliberate choice to avoid panic during initial dispatch
Exact alert text not published; reconstructed from news outlets' direct quotes of UConn alert language
ALL CLEARSMS
Approximate reconstructionReconstructed from Fox 61 and UConn's public statement on the resolution214 chars
UConnALERT: All Clear. The Student Recreation Center has been searched and no danger was found. The building will remain closed for the remainder of the day and reopen Monday at 6 a.m. The investigation is ongoing.

This text has been reconstructed from news coverage and may not reflect the exact original wording.

Fox 61 reported that the Rec Center was 'cleared to resume normal operations' and would reopen at 6 a.m. Monday
The decision to keep the building closed for the rest of Sunday even after the all-clear is consistent with bomb-protocol guidance that a second sweep be conducted before normal use resumes
Reconstructed wording; UConn did not publish the verbatim text of the all-clear message
Context

Background

On Sunday, March 9, 2025, during a collegiate climbing competition at the UConn Student Recreation Center, a neon-green sticky note bearing the words "A bomb is going to go off in the Climbing Center" was discovered. According to The Daily Campus, the note was originally placed on a climber's backpack — a friend had peeled it off and stuck it onto the climber's T-shirt, where it fell off and was reported. UConn Police and Connecticut State Police evacuated the building and conducted a full bomb-squad search. No device was found, and the Rec Center reopened at 6 AM Monday. The incident is unusual for two reasons: the medium of the threat (a handwritten sticky note rather than a phoned or emailed message), and that the threat occurred during a live multi-school athletic event, with climbers, judges, and spectators all evacuated mid-competition. UConn's response followed its longstanding bomb-threat protocols, in place since the 2014 incident in which student Matthew Tollis was charged in a coordinated multi-school bomb-threat ring.
Analysis

Key Findings

The handwritten sticky-note medium is rare in modern campus bomb threats; the overwhelming majority of recent threats arrive by email, phone, or social media
UConn's 'potentially hazardous condition' alert language is intentionally vague — a design choice meant to avoid panic when the nature of a threat is not yet confirmed
The incident illustrates how a single piece of paper can shut down a major recreation facility serving a 32,000-student R1 campus for an entire day, demonstrating the asymmetric cost of bomb-threat hoaxes
Outcome
Police searched the building and found no explosive device. The Rec Center was closed for the remainder of Sunday and reopened Monday at 6 AM EDT. The investigation into the note's origin continued. UConn Police characterized the note as having most likely originated as a prank within a friend group, but treated it as a bomb threat per protocol.
Provenance

Sources

  1. Student Paper
    UConn Rec Center evacuated due to bomb threat on Sunday (The Daily Campus)
    dailycampus.com
  2. Student Paper
    Surf, Send and Evacuate? The bizarre bomb scare at UConn's climbing competition (The Daily Campus)
    dailycampus.com
  3. News
    UConn building evacuated after authorities found threatening note (WFSB)
    wfsb.com
  4. News
    UConn Student Rec Center cleared to resume normal operations after threat (Fox 61)
    fox61.com
  5. News
    Potentially hazardous condition under investigation at UConn in Storrs (NBC Connecticut)
    nbcconnecticut.com
  6. News
    UConn: No indications of danger after threat prompts Student Recreation Center evacuation (News 12 Connecticut)
    connecticut.news12.com
Tags
bomb-threatconnecticutrec-centerclimbingsticky-noteevacuationathletic-eventuconnUnfounded
Added May 2026Updated May 2026Via ingestion