Portland State University ends shelter-in-place alert, currently monitoring 'ongoing protest on campus'

PORTLAND, Ore. — Portland State University (PSU) has lifted a shelter-in-place alert less than thirty minutes after issuing one late Friday evening. They are currently monitoring a protest that university officials initially had over "concerns about violence."

PSU, meanwhile, asked people to avoid the area in front of Hoffman Hall around 10:12 p.m.

A KGW reporter on scene reported a crowd of about 100, dressed in black, gathered north of Peter Stott Field. It appeared to be a peaceful gathering with a megaphone. 

Later, around 10:44 p.m., a PSU spokesperson told KGW in an email that it is "an ongoing protest on campus that we are monitoring."

"At one point, there were concerns about violence, which led us to issue a brief shelter in place. That shelter in place is now over. The environment has since calmed down and we have resumed monitoring," she said. 

The university posted on social media at 9:38 p.m. that there was an "incident on campus" and asked people to avoid the area, and that updates will be sent via PSU Alert. 

PSU then told KGW that the situation was "rapidly evolving," and that the university's Campus Public Safety Office is responding with assistance from the Portland Police Bureau (PPB) in the South Park Blocks area. 

This is a developing story; check back for updates.

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