LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — From dormitories to off-campus houses, cell phones all over the University of Kentucky campus and surrounding neighborhoods were lighting up shortly after 1 a.m. on Wednesday once campus police sent an emergency notification about shots fired on campus.
The call for shots fired came near a parking garage in the area of University Dr. and Cooper Dr., nearby Kroger Field.
When police responded to the scene, they confirmed this was not an active shooter situation and nobody was hurt.
While UK Police are still investigating reports received of shots fired near Parking Structure 1, this is not an active shooter situation. There are no victims reported. We will share more information as it becomes available.
— University of Kentucky (@universityofky) February 15, 2023
A few minutes later, UK tweeted the emergency condition had passed and normal activities could continue on campus.
URGENT: The emergency condition has passed. You may safely resume your regularly scheduled activity. Info at https://t.co/famIDT0e1T
— University of Kentucky (@universityofky) February 15, 2023
“When you first get it you’re like, I can’t believe this is happening,” said senior Josh Schmidt of Louisville.
Schmidt, like many of his fellow UK students, took the notification very seriously given it came on the heels of the shooting tragedy on the campus of Michigan State University earlier this week.
“It was very emotional. Obviously killing is a hard thing to think about and gun violence is very real,” said freshman Sydney Borne.
Sydney’s friend, Azul Bleier, is from South America where gun violence isn’t nearly as prevalent.
“It’s terrifying,” she said. “I’ve never gotten any sort of alert about gun violence, never been near a gun. It’s definitely a growing concern for me,” she continued before adding that her mother must’ve called 50 times to make sure she was okay.
The incident, which happened by a parking garage near Kroger Field, was resolved fairly quickly and no one was struck or injured. Campus Chief of Police Joe Monroe said everything the department does to ensure the safety of everyone on campus worked just as it should in this situation.
“…An incident like this reinforces why these efforts are so important,” he wrote in a statement that was distributed to members of the media.
“I like how Kentucky does it,” Schmidt said of the way the university manages potentially dangerous situations for its students and others.
UKPD is handling this investigation and will share more information when it becomes available.
