Law enforcement officials have cleared a scene at the U.S. Naval Academy after officials investigated a suspicious package on campus.
The school’s police and fire departments as well as first responders from Anne Arundel County and Annapolis were investigating Bancroft Hall — a dormitory largely for midshipmen — following reports of a found unknown envelope, the academy wrote in a release.
The academy said the envelope was found in Mitscher Hall, which is part of Bancroft Hall, after initially saying that it was found in the mailroom.
All midshipmen, staff and faculty were told to clear the area and five academy personnel were quarantined until the contents of the package were analyzed, the academy said.
Spokeswoman Jenny Erickson said the envelope “had tape on the outside of all four corners and felt like it may contain an unknown substance.” She added the package also had “suspicious writing on the outside.”
The package was tested for hazardous materials and cleared after noon, Erickson said.
The academy said that less than half the Brigade is currently at the school because were away on summer training and leave.
Some gates at the school that are usually open were closed, and a long line of emergency vehicles lined the road to Bancroft Hall Tuesday morning before they cleared the scene.
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Tour groups continued to go around the academy’s grounds as, in the distance, emergency responders in white hazmat-style suits worked. Some roads and corridors inside buildings were closed and midshipmen looked for alternative routes.
