Around 7:45 a.m. Wednesday morning, the Breezeway was empty before the usual rush of students. The one thing that was different from other mornings … an FAU police officer was on patrol.

At 9:45 a.m. another officer arrived on a bike, riding up and down the Breezeway. The area was not as busy as you’d find it on a normal day, with only a few pedestrians walking in either direction.

By noon, a patrol car was parked outside General Classroom South, and two other officers had set up a table for the school’s rape aggression defense classes.

The presence of these officers was not a drill, but the result of a shooting threat that targeted the Breezeway on Tuesday evening. The student responsible for the suspicious message relayed on Yik Yak was taken into custody later that night and received a suspension from all Florida Atlantic campuses until further notice.

Students felt relieved that police had found the source.

“If they didn’t find the person today and the threat was still out there, I probably would not be walking the Breezeway right now,” said senior ocean engineering student Dylan Einsidler.

To gauge how the FAU population felt about the incident, the UP polled students on the Breezeway and on Facebook for their opinions, with a multitude of ideas shared on the response by police as well as the incident itself.

Take a look at what students had to say:

Alexander Rivera, Business Marketing, Junior

“With constant violence going on in today’s society there is no threat too small to take seriously. In many cases of shootings (sic) their are signs and warning that are not taken seriously. Countless times you hear on the news of people sharing their distress before (sic) there acts of violence are committed. There is never an overreaction in a case like this. FAU administration was spot on in the calling of the police force around campus!”

Olivia Ayala, Psychology, Freshman

I think (sic) Emeil needs to be arrested. He’s grown. I don’t understand how they can call it a ” 18-year-old mistake” like they did. A threat is a threat. I don’t even see how just expelling him is going to do anything. FAU is an open campus. It’s so easy to walk on … With no kind of security, nobody will know anything until something serious does happen. But they’re not gonna arrest him? This school is a joke.”

Tyler Tinari, Undeclared, Freshman

“Personally, I think that FAU handled the situation just fine. They detained the person who created the post in question and took some safety precautions in order to protect FAU students, and no one’s been injured from a shooting, so that’s definitely positive. Even if it was an empty threat or the precautionary measures were seen as excessive, I think FAU addressed the situation in the way they should have.”

Ian Robbins, Medical Engineering, Sophomore

“I thought it was handled the way it should’ve been. It’s 2015. It’s like screaming fire in a movie theater.”

Jorge Andres Arciniegas, Exercise Science, Sophomore

“The situation was handled by the police exactly as it should have been. You can’t pick and choose what you think a real threat is because that’s when you get surprised by a violent attack. All threats must be treated very seriously. It’s much better to be proactive as opposed to reactive especially when you’re dealing with the safety of a university and its students.”

Candace Fuhrmann, Biology, Sophomore

“I would rather be safe than sorry. Getting shot on campus is not on my to-do list. And with many school shootings actually occurring, I think it needed to be taken seriously, as it was, with every precaution taken. In short they responded how they should have. Thank you FAUPD.”

Sydney Arillo, Psychology, Sophomore

“There is no way it was an overreaction. Even if it was not a serious threat, that type of threat should always be taken as if it is serious; the safety of everyone on FAU campus takes precedent over anything else. Police involvement reduced the risk of the situation occurring and I definitely can sleep better knowing that they had/have control of the situation. Things like this do happen and you really can never be “too” safe when it comes to things like this.”

David Ferreira, Computer Science, Sophomore

“I think it was an overreaction to be honest, seems a bit iffy that an actual threat would be advertising himself on yik yak. Even if it is anonymous.”

Bryan Giguere, International Business, Freshman

“FAU addressed the situation very well! They detained the subject and that was the most important part. Even though the threat wasn’t very plausible, they took it seriously, as they should. A threat is a threat. Students are safe because of these precautions. FAU did a great job handling this situation and I’m very proud to be a student at an institution that cares this much about their students!”

Erin DelPlato, Freshman (major not given)

“When you find out about the threat from the 11pm news instead of the warning text/email system fau has in place there’s a problem. At least in my opinion. And yes I am aware we got an email but it wasn’t until 1am when this situation started around 8pm. I also remember that when there was a Bomb threat in Davie over Thanksgiving break I believe at BC close to the (sic) fau Davie campus we all got texts and emails but they don’t send it for a threat on our own campus?”

Ryan Lynch is the sports editor of the University Press. For tips regarding this or other articles, he can be contacted at [email protected] or on Twitter.