Springfield, Ohio, has been dealing with bomb threats for two straight days after the city was catapulted into the national and international spotlight on Tuesday when former president Donald Trump pushed a false narrative about Haitian immigrants during the presidential debate with Vice-President Kamala Harris.
“In Springfield, they’re eating the dogs. The people that came in, they’re eating the cats. They’re eating — they’re eating the pets of the people that live there,” Trump exclaimed during the debate, which was watched by more than 67 million people.
ABC moderator David Muir fact-checked Trump during the live debate, stating that Springfield’s city manager had already dispelled the claim as a rumour with no credibility. But Trump refused to retract his statements.
“I’ve seen people on television.… The people on television say my dog was taken and used for food,” Trump said. “So maybe he said that, and maybe that’s a good thing to say for a city manager.”
The fallout of Trump’s remarks came quickly for the city of Springfield. Less than 48 hours after the debate, numerous government buildings and elementary schools received a bomb threat that the city’s mayor said included “hateful language” against Haitians.
The threats came in via email on Thursday morning just before 8:30 a.m. and were sent to multiple government agencies and media outlets, police Chief Allison Elliott said during a press conference. The emails threatened to target Springfield City Hall, two driver’s licence offices and two elementary schools.
All the locations in the email were evacuated and cleared by investigators, with the help of bomb-sniffing K9s.
A Dayton police officer and his dog return to their vehicle after sweeping the Springfield City Hall grounds for explosives after bomb threats were made against buildings earlier in the day in Springfield, Ohio, on Sept. 12, 2024.
Roberto Schmidt/AFP via Getty Images
On Friday morning, however, more bomb threats came through, according to a statement shared with Global News by Springfield city official Karen Graves.
The first bomb threat was sent at 7:21 a.m. and targeted “several City Commissioners and a City employee,” the statement reads. The second bomb threat was sent just over 20 minutes later and threatened multiple government buildings and schools, including elementary, middle and high schools.
Again, authorities evacuated all the buildings named in the bomb threats and ensured the facilities were cleared.
Local law enforcement is working with the FBI to determine the origin of the emails.
Springfield City Hall remains closed Friday due to the bomb threats.
The mayor of Springfield has told numerous U.S. outlets that the bomb threats were motivated by racism towards the city’s Haitian community members. The threats “used hateful language towards immigrants and Haitians in our community,” Mayor Rob Rue told the Washington Post.
“It’s frustrating when national politicians, on the national stage, mischaracterize what is actually going on and misrepresent our community,” Rue told the New York Times.
Haitian community members in Springfield told the Haitian Times that they feel unsafe in the wake of Trump’s false remarks. One resident said she was scared to send her niece to school and others have been keeping their children home.
“We’re all victims this morning,” said the woman, who asked not to be named for fear of reprisal. “They’re attacking us in every way.”
The woman said her cars have been smashed and had acid thrown on them since the rumours about Haitian immigrants eating pets began.
The city estimates that about 12,000 to 15,000 Haitian immigrants have settled in the Springfield area, according to a Frequently Asked Questions page about immigration on the city’s website. Officials have apparently been fielding questions about why immigrants aren’t working, prompting a written statement that immigrants are employed in “various industries that are in great need of workers.”
“Jobs include work in warehouses, manufacturing and the service industry. Some immigrants are working in professional jobs as well,” city officials write. “Springfield is also now home to ten newer businesses, opened by Haitian immigrants, including, 2 Haitian restaurants, 7 Haitian grocery stores and 1 Haitian food truck.”
The page also affirms that the immigrants “are here legally, under the Immigration Parole Program.”
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This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.