Schools in the province of Lower Austria received bomb threats yesterday and today, Austrian Radio and Television (ORF) reported. According to police, 25 schools were affected early Monday morning, some of which were evacuated as a precaution, BTA reported.
“There are more and more threats“, police spokesman Johann Baumschlager told the radio and television. In a text generated by artificial intelligence, the authors report that a bomb will explode in the school on Monday morning.
According to police, at least three schools in the capital of Lower Austria, St. Pölten, have been affected. Baumschlager is not yet willing to comment on the other locations. Several schools have already been searched with dogs and explosives experts. No bomb has yet been found there. "We are taking this matter seriously and are working with the Education Directorate."
Safety measures have been taken at the affected schools, Baumschlager said, including evacuations and special assembly points. The schools have emergency plans in place, a spokesman for the Education Directorate added.
Threats against schools have been made not only in Lower Austria but also in Upper Austria. According to police, several schools in Linz have also been affected, especially vocational schools.
In the meantime, the Lower Austrian criminal police are investigating where the emails were sent from. Baumschlager emphasizes: "These are dangerous threats, namely against a large number of schools, and the court will punish them accordingly."