Sunday, October 2, 2005
One person is dead following an explosion that occurred outside a packed University of Oklahoma football stadium Saturday night, where the school was hosting Kansas State University. Authorities are calling the incident a suicide, but it is still under investigation.
The incident occurred shortly before halftime of the Kansas State – OU game. Those inside and outside the stadium heard a “boom,” and others reported feeling the blast from blocks away. It occurred near locations of buses parked for the game, and classroom buildings of the university.
Those attending the game were initially told not to leave during halftime, and were later instructed by the public announcement system not to exit on the west and south ends of the stadium. Bomb searches were done in the parking complexes outside the stadium and neighboring accessways around the west side of the stadium. Authorities searched and located at least one other device in the vicinity, and the device was detonated without incident. Areas west of the Gaylord Memorial Stadium have been blocked from access by authorities.
OU President Boren said in a statement that “At no time was anyone in the stadium in danger,” and that the incident is being investigated as an apparent individual suicide.