Bombs over Holyoke 19 years, 10 months ago by Martey Dodoo

The Crimson reports on a mysterious package at the Holyoke Center yesterday. Normally, I would find this a serious event, but the package was opened before the police arrived.

An unidentified male opened the box and removed an object that ?looked like something electrical, like a cell phone or a beeper,? O'Connor said.

O'Connor added she was uncertain of the contents of the box.

O'Connor said the male then closed the box, explaining that he had hoped that there would have been money inside. O'Connor's break partner then alerted Arthur Strauss, UHS' manager of central services, to the presence of the box. Strauss said he called the police.

Of course, when I see random packages on the street, I automatically assume that they are full of cold, hard cash. In fact, money found in boxes belonging to other people made up a substantial amount of my 2003 income.

UHS Safety Warden Mac Howland said the police evacuated the levels of Holyoke Center up to the third floor because they feared that an explosion could have caused glass to fly from windows.

Jamie Fletcher, an accounts receivables supervisor who works on the 10th floor of Holyoke Center, was one of several bystanders expressing concern that only part of the building was evacuated.

?If they are taking [the threat] seriously, it's scary that they didn't evacuate everyone or tell people inside what's going on,? Fletcher said.

The Holyoke Center is a pretty large building. Large enough that a medium-size box would not destroy it, assuming that it does not contain plutonium or antimatter. In this case, I think a partial evacuation was all that was necessary.