Police issue checklist for responding to bomb threats

Iceland’s National Police Commissioner has sent school leaders in Reykjavík a checklist on how to respond to bomb threats, mbl.is reports. It advises staff to stay calm, keep the caller on the line and gather as much information as possible.

Some Reykjavík municipal institutions received bomb threats yesterday, mbl.is reported. It has not been confirmed whether schools were among them.

The two-page checklist advises staff to alert colleagues so police can be notified, and to ask where the bomb is, when it is due to explode, what type of explosive is being used and why the caller made the threat.

Staff should write down what the caller says, preferably word for word, and note the person’s voice, speech and any background sounds. They should also assess whether the caller sounds agitated, intoxicated, nervous, amused or angry. The checklist says not to hang up, even if the caller ends the call.

The guidance says people who work or spend time in the building may be best placed to search it because they know the surroundings and can identify unusual objects. Anyone who finds a suspicious object should not touch or move it, but should notify police, who will decide whether the building needs to be evacuated.

The checklist also covers threats sent by post or email, stressing that potential evidence should be preserved for a police investigation.