Some may have heard about the bomb threat at the District convention in Arizona last week.
Here is a report from a dub that was there...
Here is my report on our adventure that I sent to friends. We just
returned home from our exciting district convention.
We were with a different group than usual this time and saw many friends =
that we have not seen in years. It was a great reunion.
But we had some excitement on Sunday. About ten minutes into the drama,
the convention overseer, walked onto the stage right through the actors.
A microphone was hoisted onto the stage in front of him, the drama tape
was stopped and he proceeded to say, "We have a very important =
announcement to make, at this time we must evacuate the building!". The
convention chairman was so calm and assuring in his tone and directions
it made it so easy to follow his directions.
You could have heard a pin drop. We were then instructed to please stay
where we were at the time. We would receive instructions from the =
attendants. We were told that we want to do this in an organized =
manner, we will leave the building by sections out the north exits only,
do not use the side exits. The bottom floor will leave by the lower
exits, upper levels from the top exits. We were told to go to the north
of the building complex. Two smaller auditoriums in that area were to
be filled first with the elderly and those handicap to get them out of
the heat. We were told not to take our lunch bags with us because they
would be checked by police. Take only our personal belongings. =20
We were encouraged to stay calm and exit as quickly as possible. SO OUT
WE WENT. The group was exceptionally quiet, despite the anxiety. You
could see the anticipation on the faces. As we went out a wall of =
attendants directed us farther away from the building. Eventually most
all were told to go inside the 2 smaller auditoriums as we entered in
police searched all bags. Some of the friends were in a little panic =
because of their children. One family had let their children sit down =
in front of the stage for the drama, while the parents sat up high, we =
were evacuated out different areas, in was easy to lose some one in a =
crowd of 7,721 all moving as a flood of people. One sister had been =
walking with a baby that wasn't hers, she was also evacuated a different =
way, and the parents had no idea where the baby went.
Extra chairs were set up in the smaller auditoriums, even on the stage =
to fit everyone inside out of the heat. The friends began to sing, some =
from the audience would hold up a paper with the number. Most had =
forgotten their songbooks in the moment so they sang from memory. We =
would be interrupted from time to time with an update. It was decided =
that the Watchtower summary could be covered while we waited. We =
started with song and prayer. Since there wasn't any music the chairman =
had to lead the song. The brother covering the Watchtower summary had =
left his notes in the convention center. Someone handed him a =
Watchtower and proceeded, he did a fantastic job. Of course the subject =
couldn't be more appropriate. "If God is For Us Who Will Be Against =
Us?" We were all living this material at the moment.
It was so encouraging to see how obedient the group was to the =
instruction given. And how calm everyone remained. The attendant =
department went into action, evacuating, moving, relocating and re- =
seating. They had a big job this time. The fire department brought in =
water bottles to pass out. The cleaning department quickly set up trash =
containers.
The time seemed to be impossible to keep tract of in the excitement, but =
after several hours we were told that we could go back into the =
convention hall, about 2:15. P.M. Everyone was starving. Time was =
given for lunch. The group was really glad to be back in the convention =
center and the opening song was sung with real enthusiasm. The Drama =
started again from the beginning. The final talk began at 5:07.
The official report was that the Tucson police received a threat against =
our convention. The administration decided to evacuate so the police =
could investigate thoroughly and have no danger to our safety. 7,721 =
people evacuated peacefully in 13 minutes.
Les works in the accounting department. The Sunday count is always the =
longest. This time was long and late. We left Tucson at 8:00 PM. =
This is one convention we will never forget.
We reflected on how valuable our training is at smaller assemblies. =
Administration, attendant department, cleaning. Our learning to work =
together and obey instructions is so valuable when we as a large group =
are threatened by a big problem .