No bomb found after warning at school near US embassy in Armenia

Armenian Radio First Programme, Yerevan
19 Nov 04

[Presenter] The propaganda of terror is again being spread in
Yerevan. Last time unknown people spread information that an
earthquake was expected, even giving the exact time, whereas this time
they have reported that a bomb has been placed in one of Yerevan’s
schools.

This causes anxiety and unrest among the people. What is the purpose
of the terror propaganda is not yet known. We asked the head of the
public information department of the Armenian Directorate for
Emergency Situations, Nikolay Grigoryan, to answer our question.

[Nikolay Grigoryan] The Yerevan Police Department received a call at
1040 [0640 gmt] that an explosive device had been placed at Yerevan’s
Chekhov School. The director of the Chekhov School, Gayane
Sarukhanyan, reported that at 1043 [0643 gmt] an unknown man called
and said that a terrorist act was expected at Chekhov School at 1200
sharp [0800 gmt]. The man who called the school asked the school
headmistress to take the news seriously. After the call, a joint plan
and emergency measures of the Directorate for Emergency Situations,
the police and health organizations were put into operation.

Teachers and pupils were fully evacuated at 1125 [0725 gmt]. The
law-enforcement agencies and dog-handlers are working at the scene and
have not found any explosive device. Apart from this, all the rescue
team, ambulances and operational employees are at the scene and they
are carrying on their work.

This is not the first and won’t be the last terror call. Generally
such calls have very severe and grave consequences.

I would like to give a warning that similar calls and warnings can be
verified only by the official information of the government
authorities. All this is rumours and gossip aimed at spreading fear
and anxiety among people.