Campus Alert Archive
Bates

Lewiston Mass Shooting Locks Down Bates College for Two Days as Gunman Kills 18 in Campus City

MEactive shooteremergency notificationhigh confidence
Confirmed Threat

On October 25, 2023, Robert Card killed 18 people and wounded 13 at two locations in Lewiston, Maine — Just-In-Time Recreation bowling alley and Schemengees Bar and Grille. Bates College, located in Lewiston, went into lockdown at approximately 8:00 PM EDT. Students sheltered in unlit rooms across campus. A Bates employee was among those injured. The lockdown lasted until October 27 when Card was found dead.

Alerts
2
Response
—
Killed
18
Injured
13
Institution
Bates College
Private Liberal Arts · ME
~1,800 students
Confirmed Timeline

Alert Sequence

2 messages in sequence · 1 verified verbatim

Some alert texts below are approximate reconstructions from news coverage, not confirmed verbatim transcripts. Reconstructed texts are shown in italic with a dashed border. Verified verbatim texts have a solid border and are marked accordingly.

INITIAL ALERTmulti-channel
Verified verbatimBates College Emergency Management page179 chars
Campus - There is an active shooter situation in Lewiston and the city is on lockdown and police have asked residents to stay indoors with doors locked and to stay off of streets.
Sent at 8:47 PM EDT on October 25, 2023, approximately 113 minutes after the first shootings began at the Just-In-Time Recreation bowling alley shortly before 7:00 PM EDT (first 911 call at 6:56 PM)
Opens with the "Campus - " addressee prefix exactly as posted on the official Bates College Emergency Management archive page
The alert described a city-wide lockdown rather than a campus-specific threat, reflecting that the shootings occurred off-campus but in the same city
Students sheltered in unlit rooms in the library, dining hall, classrooms, and dormitories
ALL CLEARmulti-channel+1d
Approximate reconstruction210 chars
The lockdown has been lifted. The suspect Robert Card has been found deceased. The city of Lewiston has lifted its shelter-in-place order. Bates campus is now open. Classes remain cancelled through the weekend.

This text has been reconstructed from news coverage and may not reflect the exact original wording.

Card was found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound at approximately 7:45 PM EDT on October 27, near Lisbon, Maine
The lockdown lasted approximately 47 hours — one of the longest campus lockdowns in US history
Classes were cancelled for multiple additional days as the campus and community began processing the trauma
Context

Background

On the evening of October 25, 2023, Robert Card killed 18 people and wounded 13 at Just-In-Time Recreation bowling alley and Schemengees Bar and Grille in Lewiston, Maine — the deadliest mass shooting in Maine history. Bates College, a liberal arts institution located in Lewiston, went into lockdown at approximately 8:00 PM EDT. The Bates Emergency Management page documented the initial alert sent at 8:47 PM. The Boston Globe reported that students sheltered in unlit rooms across campus, with some hiding in the library, dining hall, and dormitories for hours. A Bates employee was among the 13 wounded. GBH News reported that multiple Maine colleges cancelled classes in the aftermath. The lockdown continued for approximately 47 hours until Card was found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound near Lisbon on October 27. WBUR covered the extended campus closures across Maine. The tragedy prompted nationwide discussion about campus safety when mass violence occurs in a college's host city rather than on campus itself.
Analysis

Key Findings

The approximately 47-hour lockdown was one of the longest in US campus history, driven by the manhunt for the suspected gunman
A Bates employee was among the 13 wounded, directly connecting the campus community to the tragedy
The incident raised questions about campus emergency protocols when mass violence occurs off-campus but in the same city
Outcome
Robert Card was found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound on October 27 near Lisbon, Maine. The lockdown was lifted that evening. Classes were cancelled for multiple days. A Bates employee was among the 13 wounded.
Provenance

Sources

  1. Official
    Lewiston Lockdown (Bates College Emergency Management)
    emergency.bates.edu
  2. News
    Bates College students describe terrifying night (Boston Globe)
    bostonglobe.com
  3. News
    Maine colleges cancel classes following mass shooting (GBH News)
    wgbh.org
  4. News
    Maine colleges remained closed Thursday (WBUR)
    wbur.org
  5. national media
    2023 Lewiston shootings (Wikipedia)
    en.wikipedia.org
Tags
active-shootermass-shootinglewistonmaineliberal-arts-collegecity-wide-lockdown47-hour-lockdown18-killedmanhunt
Added April 2026Updated June 2026Via ingestion