Explosion at Northeastern University in Boston


BOSTON-

A package exploded on the campus of Northeastern University in Boston on Tuesday night, and the college said a staff member was slightly injured.

Authorities said another suspicious package had been found near a major art museum and the FBI was assisting in the investigation.

The package that exploded was one of two that were reported to police in the early evening. The Boston bomb squad disabled a second package near the city’s Museum of Fine Arts, which sits on the outskirts of Northeast Campus.

NBC Boston reported that the exploding package exploded as it opened near the university’s Holmes Hall, which houses the university’s Creative Writing Program and its Women’s, Gender, and Studies program. sexuality. He said the FBI was assisting in the investigation.

Authorities declined to give details, but North East spokeswoman Shannon Nargi said in a statement that an unidentified university staff member suffered minor hand injuries in the blast. .

Police converged on campus shortly before 7:30 p.m., and the university asked students who had gathered for an evening journalism class in the lobby to evacuate the building.

Northeastern is a private university in downtown Boston. WCVB said one of its reporters, Mike Beaudet, was teaching a class there at the time. Beaudet told the station his class was moved outside but neither he nor his students heard an explosion.

Northeast Police Force Chief Michael Davis told reporters the campus was secure. Boston police did not say if any other suspicious packages were found.

“We are monitoring the situation in the Northeast and stand ready to work with the university and our law enforcement partners on any lawsuits that may develop,” said Suffolk County Prosecutor Kevin Hayden. , promising “a thorough investigation to determine exactly what happened”. here.”

Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, both across the Charles River separating Boston from Cambridge, said they were increasing patrols on their campuses as a precaution and urging students and faculty to report any suspicious item.

Tuesday’s explosion marked one of Boston’s first major scares since 2013, when two bombs planted near the Boston Marathon finish line killed three spectators and injured more than 260 others.