Campus Alert Archive
TXST

Five Dorms Emptied at Dusk: Texas State Joins a Monday Night Wave of Campus Bomb Hoaxes

TXbomb threatemergency notificationmedium confidence
Confirmed HoaxDetermined to be a hoax. The institutional response is documented because it reveals how the alert system performed under a perceived real threat.

On January 29, 2024, Texas State University in San Marcos received a bomb threat targeting five residence halls just before 7:00 PM CST. Butler Hall, College Inn, Derrick Hall, Jackson Hall, and Tower Hall were evacuated while the FBI and local law enforcement searched the buildings. The threat was determined to be unfounded within approximately 45 minutes.

Alerts
2
Response
—
Killed
—
Injured
—
Institution
Texas State University
Public R2 · TX
~38,000 studentsTXST Emergency Management
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 ALERTTwitter/X
Verified verbatimVerbatim @txst Twitter/X post (status 1752131191417807025) on January 29, 2024233 chars
@UPDtxst is investigating a potential emergency on San Marcos campus. Five buildings are being evacuated out of an abundance of caution: Butler Hall College Inn Derrick Hall Jackson Hall Tower Hall Check here: https://t.co/sMPGYy09Rc
Posted by the @txst official university account at approximately 6:46 PM CST on January 29, 2024
The tweet routes campus community members to a status page via the t.co shortened link
Five residence halls were evacuated simultaneously: Butler, College Inn, Derrick, Jackson, and Tower
The phrase 'out of an abundance of caution' is hedged language — common in alerts where the threat is being treated as serious but is not yet confirmed credible
Tags @UPDtxst — the University Police Department's handle — establishing the responding agency in the alert itself
ALL CLEARPush+42 min
Approximate reconstruction201 chars
TXST Update: All clear. The bomb threat has been determined to be unfounded. Students may return to Butler Hall, College Inn, Derrick Hall, Jackson Hall, and Tower Hall. Normal operations have resumed.

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

Reconstructed from San Marcos Record and Fox 7 Austin coverage of the incident
The all-clear came approximately 45 minutes after the initial evacuation order
The FBI assisted local law enforcement in searching and clearing the buildings
Context

Background

On the evening of January 29, 2024, Texas State University received a bomb threat targeting five residence halls on its San Marcos campus. The TXST Office of Emergency Management announced around 6:46 PM CST that Butler Hall, College Inn, Derrick Hall, Jackson Hall, and Tower Hall were being evacuated out of an abundance of caution. The university made Alkek Library, LBJ Student Center, and dining halls available for displaced students. The FBI and other law enforcement agencies searched and cleared all five buildings, determining the threat to be unfounded just before 7:30 PM. The incident occurred on the same night that the University of Texas at Arlington also received multiple bomb threats to its residence halls, suggesting a coordinated wave of hoax threats targeting Texas universities that evening.
Analysis

Key Findings

Five residence halls were evacuated simultaneously on a Monday evening
The threat was resolved in approximately 45 minutes, a faster response than the concurrent UT Arlington incident
The FBI assisted in the investigation, indicating federal involvement in what was likely a coordinated hoax targeting multiple Texas campuses
Outcome
The threat was determined to be unfounded. Students were cleared to return to their residence halls just before 7:30 PM. The university made Alkek Library, LBJ Student Center, and dining halls available during the evacuation.
Provenance

Sources

  1. News
    Texas State says all clear after bomb threat leads to evacuations (KVUE)
    kvue.com
  2. News
    Texas State University given the all-clear after unfounded bomb threat (CBS Austin)
    cbsaustin.com
  3. News
    Dorms on campus evacuated during false bomb threat (San Marcos Record)
    sanmarcosrecord.com
  4. News
    Texas universities issue all-clear after bomb threats prompt evacuations (CBS Texas)
    cbsnews.com
Tags
bomb-threatresidence-hallsevacuationhoaxtexascoordinated-threatsfbi-involvementHoax
Added May 2026Updated May 2026Via ingestion