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Illinois

Shelter in Place: 50 Illinois Students Caught in the Brussels Bombings

ILshelter in placeadvisorymedium confidence

After suicide bombers killed 32 people at Brussels Airport and Maelbeek metro station on March 22, 2016, the University of Illinois had roughly 50 students and faculty in two study-abroad programs in the Brussels area. The university's Office of International Safety and Security issued an International Safety and Security Alert instructing them to shelter in place, check in, and avoid public spaces until travel was safe.

Alerts
2
Response
Killed
Injured
Institution
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Public R1 · IL
International Safety and Security Alert
Confirmed Timeline

Alert Sequence

2 messages in sequence

Some alert texts below are approximate reconstructions from news coverage, not confirmed verbatim transcripts. Reconstructed texts are shown in italic with a dashed border. Verified verbatim texts have a solid border and are marked accordingly.

INITIAL ALERTEmail
Approximate reconstruction413 chars
INTERNATIONAL SAFETY AND SECURITY ALERT - Belgium. Following this morning's attacks in Brussels, all University of Illinois students and faculty currently in Belgium are asked to check in with the Office of International Safety and Security immediately, shelter in place, and avoid public spaces until it is clear that it is safe to travel. Continue to monitor media and social media for changes in the situation.

This text has been reconstructed from news coverage and may not reflect the exact original wording.

Reconstructed from reporting that the Office of International Safety and Security issued an 'International Safety and Security Alert' telling students to check in, shelter in place, and avoid public spaces until safe to travel; exact wording was not published, so isVerbatimConfirmed is false.
The phrase 'shelter in place' was reported as the explicit instruction, mirroring the U.S. State Department guidance to Americans in Brussels that day.
UPDATEEmail
Approximate reconstruction322 chars
UPDATE: All University of Illinois students and faculty studying abroad in Belgium have been confirmed safe and accounted for. There are roughly 50 students and faculty in two separate study programs in the Brussels area. Please continue to shelter in place and monitor media and social media for changes in the situation.

This text has been reconstructed from news coverage and may not reflect the exact original wording.

The figure of roughly 50 students and faculty across two Brussels-area programs is the verified detail and is preserved exactly.
Marked as an update rather than an all-clear because the shelter-in-place instruction remained in force; Brussels stayed on its highest alert level.
Context

Background

On the morning of March 22, 2016, coordinated suicide bombings at Brussels Airport in Zaventem and at Maelbeek metro station killed 32 people and wounded more than 300. The University of Illinois, headquartered in Urbana-Champaign, had roughly 50 students and faculty in two study-abroad programs in the Brussels area. NBC Chicago reported that all were confirmed safe and told to shelter in place and monitor media for changes, while Illinois Public Media reported the Office of International Safety and Security issued a formal International Safety and Security Alert asking students to check in and avoid public spaces until safe. Staff reached students via social media, email and text. The day's response paralleled those at Boston University and the University of Oregon, making Brussels a defining moment for US study-abroad emergency communication.
Provenance

Sources

  1. News
  2. News
  3. Source
Tags
study-abroadbrusselsbelgiumterrorismshelter-in-placeinternationalglobal-program2016
Added May 2026Updated May 2026Via ingestion