UPDATED: No credible threats found in Cedar City as bomb threat is checked out

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CEDAR CITY — Authorities in Cedar City said they received a bomb threat regarding an unspecified school location early Thursday morning, but confirmed later that nothing suspicious had been found at any schools in the area.

Updated Aug. 20, 4:10 p.m. with additional information indicating no credible threats have been found, along with a statement from the FBI.

In a press release from the Cedar City Police Department, Lt. Jimmy Roden said that at approximately 3:30 a.m., Cedar Communications Center received a “recorded bomb threat.”

“The caller indicated that a nail bomb had been placed ‘on campus,’” Roden said in the release. “The call was brief and void of many details. There were no specific details as to which campus the caller was referring.”

Roden said that all the agencies in Iron County have been working together to check the schools in their respective jurisdictions; however, at this point, while faculty and staff may be on campuses, the majority of schools in the district have not yet resumed instruction.

“The Iron County School district and Southern Utah University have been notified,” Roden said, “and are working with their staff to ensure there is nothing unusual in or around any of the buildings. The FBI has been contacted and asked to assist with the investigation.”

Thursday afternoon, officials at both Southern Utah University and Iron County School District confirmed that nothing suspicious had been found at any of their campuses, school buildings or other properties.

“At this time there is no credible threat to campus,” a statement from SUU said. “The SUU community is encouraged to report any suspicious activities or items to SUU Campus Police.”

Similar incidents were reported around the country today, including at Ohio State and Penn State. Respective reports from news outlets in those areas said there was nothing indicate that any of the threats were credible.

Contacted for comment, the Salt Lake City FBI office issued a prepared statement Thursday afternoon that said:

The FBI is aware of recent bomb threats made in cities around the country, and we remain in touch with our law enforcement partners to provide assistance. As always, we encourage the public to remain vigilant and to promptly report suspicious activities which could represent a threat to public safety.
An FBI spokesperson declined to give further public comment beyond that statement, but said they would continue to assist local authorities in their investigations.

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