Suspicious package before TPUSA event results in controlled detonation

A building at the Utah State University (USU) campus was evacuated Tuesday ahead of a scheduled Turning Point USA (TPUSA) event, according to multiple reports.

A building on the campus was asked to be evacuated as speculations of a potential bomb surfaced online, according to KSLTV. While the building was not near the TPUSA event, a video of an explosion being heard was posted on X, the outlet reported.

Around 2:40 p.m. local time, the university sent out an “Aggie Alert,” stating that the “Old Main building” was ordered to be evacuated and asked those inside to only take “essential items.”

“An evacuation has been ordered for the Old Main building on Logan campus due to a suspicious package. Police are responding. Leave immediately using the nearest exit. Use stairs, not elevators. Take only essential items. Go to your department’s evacuation area if applicable. Follow instructions from emergency personnel. Updates will follow,” USU posted on their website.

The TPUSA event is scheduled to be held at USU’s Dee Glen Smith Spectrum, which is less than two miles north of where the evacuation took place at the Old Main building.

Videos were quickly posted onto X of students and others outside of the Old Main building, waiting nearby. Shortly after the alert, officials arrived at the scene, appearing to suit up and head into the building, according to KSLTV.

In one video posted on X, officials could be heard yelling, “Fire in the hole!” before an explosion was heard by witnesses.

Since the reports, USU released an updated statement, revealing that the “suspicious package” was found to be a “non-explosive device” but was detonated out of an “abundance of caution.”

“A suspicious device was found near the exterior of Old Main. University and Local law enforcement were dispatched to the scene. A device was located and deemed to be a non-explosive device. Out of an abundance of caution, the bomb squad detonated the suspicious device. Old Main building is now clear and safe. All scheduled events may resume as normal,” USU wrote.

With the TPUSA tour continuing since the assassination of the organization’s founder, Charlie Kirk, at Utah Valley University, the third stop at USU marks the first time TPUSA has returned to Utah since Kirk was fatally shot. Scheduled speakers for the event include TPUSA contributor Alex Clark, Republican Utah Sen. Mike Lee, Republican Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, Republican Arizona Rep. Andy Biggs, and Fox’s Jason Chaffetz.

According to 2KUTV, USU officials stated that security for the event will be similar to their sporting events to protect attendees and speakers. The measures include walking through a required metal detector upon entry, backpacks and purses being searched, no signs allowed, and no re-entry permitted, the outlet reported.

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