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Springfield On The Brink

Bomb Threats, Colleges Close, Schools Evacuate As Haitian Migrant Crisis Grows

Two colleges in Springfield, Ohio, have moved to virtual learning and two elementary schools were evacuated Monday after receiving separate threats.

The closures come amid ongoing fallout from baseless allegations former President Donald Trump made during the second presidential debate that Haitian immigrants in the city are stealing and eating local pets.

Students at Simon Kenton and Kenwood Elementary Schools were evacuated “to an alternate district location” Monday based on information district officials received from the city’s police, the Springfield City School District said in a statement.

“These are the fifth and sixth SCSD buildings to be targeted by recent threats within the last week,” the district noted in a statement.

Elsewhere in the city, classes at Wittenberg University were held remotely Monday while campus police and local law enforcement continued to assess emailed threats of a bombing and a campus shooting that targeted “members of the Haitian community,” the university said in a statement.

Nearby Clark State College also announced its campuses will be closed this week and classes will be held virtually after the school also received similar threats through email. Officials at both schools said they were taking the measures “out of an abundance of caution.”

Ohio GOP Gov. Mike DeWine on Monday night ordered State Police troopers outside of schools. And municipal buildings are reportedly poised to close.

Read the full story from CNN

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