Campus Alert Archive
TCC

Six Campuses, One Morning: Tidewater Among the Hampton Roads Bomb-Threat Wave

VAbomb threatemergency notificationmedium confidence

On July 12, 2022, Tidewater Community College was one of six Hampton Roads colleges and universities targeted by bomb threats in a single morning. A caller reported a bomb in a backpack at TCC's Chesapeake campus, prompting an evacuation and a search by explosive-detection K-9s. Authorities found nothing and deemed the threats a connected hoax.

Alerts
2
Response
—
Killed
—
Injured
—
Institution
Tidewater Community College
Community College · VA
~25,000 studentsTCC Alerts
Confirmed Timeline

Alert Sequence

2 messages in sequence

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 ALERTSMS
Approximate reconstruction172 chars
TCC Alert: A bomb threat has been reported at the Chesapeake Campus. Evacuate the building immediately and move to a safe distance. Do not re-enter until cleared by police.

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

Reconstructed wording; the exact TCC Alert text was not published, so this is marked unconfirmed.
Reporting described a caller claiming a bomb in a backpack and an evacuation while explosive-detection dogs searched.
ALL CLEARSMS
Approximate reconstruction172 chars
TCC Alert: Police K-9 teams have searched the building and found no device. The Chesapeake Campus is cleared and the all-clear is in effect. Thank you for your cooperation.

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

Reconstructed all-clear; sources confirmed the search found no device and that the threat was determined to be a hoax.
Authorities believed all six Hampton Roads campus threats that day were connected.
Context

Background

Tidewater Community College, the largest two-year institution in southeastern Virginia, was caught up in a coordinated bomb-threat wave across the Hampton Roads region on July 12, 2022. According to 13News Now, six institutions — Regent University, Tidewater Community College, Norfolk State University, Virginia Peninsula Community College, Eastern Shore Community College, and Paul D. Camp Community College — investigated threats that morning. At TCC's Chesapeake campus, a caller claimed a bomb was in a backpack; deputies evacuated the building and brought in explosive-detection dogs, which found nothing. Authorities concluded the threats were connected and a hoax. The episode reflected a national 2022 pattern of serial swatting-style bomb threats sweeping across multiple campuses on the same day.
Analysis

Key Findings

Tidewater was one of six Hampton Roads colleges and universities threatened the same morning
A caller reported a bomb in a backpack at the Chesapeake campus; K-9 teams found nothing
Authorities determined the regional threats were connected and a hoax
Provenance

Sources

  1. News
    6 Hampton Roads colleges, universities receive bomb threats - 13News Now
    13newsnow.com
  2. News
    Local police investigate bomb threats at multiple colleges in Hampton Roads - WTKR
    wtkr.com
  3. Official
    Drive-by shooting / bomb threat coverage - Tidewater Community College in the news
    tcc.edu
Tags
bomb-threathoaxcommunity-collegevirginiahampton-roadsserial-threatsemergency-notification
Added May 2026Updated May 2026Via ingestion