Bomb Scare at Memorial Hall Concert

A bomb scare at Memorial Hall Saturday night threatened to cancel a scheduled a cappella concert, but University officials allowed the concert to proceed after determining there was no danger, Harvard Police Lt. William K. Donaldson said yesterday.

According to a report filed by Police Sgt. John Miller, police responded to a call from the Harvard Telephone Office early Saturday evening in which office staff said they had just received a bomb threat directed at Memorial Hall, Donaldson said.

The Telephone Office said a "male with a heavy foreign accent" told one of their operators, "Because of the conviction of our friends in New York, we have planted a bomb in Memorial Hall and it will be blown up tonight," the report said.

Donaldson said the police currently have no suspects in the case, but that in investigation is underway.

Donaldson said police immediately secured the building following the call, forcing about 500 people attending an Earthwatch conference to evacuate Alumni Hall.

Members of the Harvard and Cambridge Police Departments and Memorial Hall Managers searched the building allowing the concert to continue.