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Chadron State College reopened its campus shortly after noon Thursday, about 12 hours after being locked down during the community-wide search of five armed robbery suspects.
A successful manhunt that involved about 50 officers from at least 10 law enforcement agencies followed Wednesday night's casino robbery near the Nebraska-South Dakota border 20 miles northwest of Chadron. The subjects were arrested late Thursday morning on the west-central side of Chadron. No injuries were reported.
Because of the disruption, CSC canceled both its day and night classes and only essential employees were expected to report the remainder of the day. Classes also were canceled at the college's distance learning sites throughout western Nebraska. Chadron State's volleyball match against Adams State, however, will begin at 7 p.m. Thursday in Armstrong Gym as scheduled.
Joining CSC in closing were the city schools and a lengthy list of agencies and businesses.
CSC President Dr. Janie Park expressed gratitude to law enforcement agencies and others who assisted with the effort. It is believed to be the first time the entire campus, with its five residence halls and apartment unit complex, has been locked down.
"There were about 800 people on our campus last night, and 800 people are a lot of people to be worried about," she said. "We really appreciate the help of everyone who worked to keep them safe."
Dr. Randy Rhine, CSC vice president for enrollment management and student services, said the college began the lockdown shortly after midnight at the suggestion of Chadron Police Chief Tim Lordino.
Park said it seemed that Lordino and the other agencies "did everything just right."
During the lockdown, CSC employees and students were allowed in and out of residences and office buildings only with security escort. Law enforcement searched buildings on campus after students reported seeing the suspects outside residence halls.
"We may have used an abundance of caution in this situation, but the first thing you think about is the safety of the students," Rhine said.
Dawes County Sheriff Karl Dailey commended the students for their patience during the lockdown.
"They were just terrific," he said. "Any gibes they gave us were purely in fun. They did just what we asked them to do."
Park said Chadron State's size made the lockdown much more manageable than it would have been at a larger institution. She also said CSC, like other colleges and universities, has a heightened sense of security after re-evaluating its procedures following the mass shooting at Virginia Tech.
"If we were a university with 35,000 students, it would have been much more difficult to get the word out," she said. "This was a good test for us, and I believe things went extremely well."
Rhine said the lockdown wouldn't have been possible without the work of CSC's housing staff and other college employees. The CSC community was told of the lockdown by use of phones, Internet, door-to-door visits and regional media reports.
"We were in good shape in a short period of time," Rhine said.
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