Otago Polytechnic chief executive Andrew McSweeney said earlier this afternoon it was made aware ‘‘of a potential security threat affecting our campus premises’’.
‘‘We became aware this morning of a brief email which made a bomb threat relating to our facility. This message was sent to a department group email address at Otago Polytechnic.’’
The threat did not specify a location, so its Dunedin, Cromwell and Wānaka campuses all closed for the remainder of the day.
Police were notified and provided advice to the polytechnic’s leadership team.
In an update this afternoon, Mr McSweeney said it had advised staff and students all three campuses would be open again from tomorrow morning.
‘‘Otago Polytechnic leadership appreciated the patience and cooperation of staff and students on Monday afternoon in evacuating the campuses as quickly and calmly as possible.’’
The Otago Polytechnic Childcare Centre in Forth St also closed this afternoon.
Restrictions were put in place at its student village, Te Pā Tauira, and alternative arrangements had been made for tonight's dinner catering for residents.
Auxiliary staff, including cleaning contractors, would be able to enter the campuses tonight, but they remained closed to all staff and students until tomorrow morning.
Scheduled Monday night classes on campus in Dunedin and Wānaka had also been cancelled, Mr McSweeney said.
Detective Inspector Glenn Baldwin, of Auckland City CIB, said this afternoon police were made aware of an email of concern against an educational facility in Dunedin about 10.45am today.
‘‘At this stage Police believe this is part of Operation Irena, an ongoing investigation into threatening emails sent to organisations across New Zealand.
‘‘Police perceive that the risk to the public is low. The institution was advised of this and chose to self-evacuate.’’
Otago Polytechnic sent an email and text message to all students and staff about noon, instructing them to leave campus buildings promptly and calmly.
All campus buildings were subsequently locked down and remained closed for the rest of Monday.
Mr McSweeney said more than 1000 staff and students were impacted by the evacuations and decision to close its campuses.
‘‘We understand several other organisations around the country received a similar threat, which police are investigating.’’
Several Otago Polytechnic students, who declined to be named, said it was unsettling to receive the text message.
The mass exodus caused a minor traffic jam in Anzac Ave, as cars all tried to leave the area at the same time.
Meanwhile, a University of Otago spokesperson said they were not impacted by today's threat.
‘‘We are aware that Otago Polytechnic has today evacuated its campus as a precaution due to a potential security threat.
‘‘The university has liaised with police and the polytechnic on this matter. Our campus is unaffected and remains open.’’
The spokesperson said they had not received the email in question ‘‘to the best of our knowledge’’.
