Suspicious Package

Suspicious Package Indicators 

• Hand-delivered 
• Powdery substance on the outside 
• Unexpected or from someone unfamiliar to the addressee 
• Receipt followed by an anonymous caller asking if the item arrived 
• No postage or excessive postage 
• Handwritten or poorly typed address, incorrect titles or titles with no name, or misspellings of common words. 
• Addressed to someone who is not at the school 
• No return address or an address that can’t be verified as legitimate 
• Unusual weight, given its size, or is lopsided or oddly shaped 
• Unusual shape, soft spots, or bulges 
• “Sloshing sound” Mail bombs typically do not “tick.” 
• Pressure or resistance when opening the package may indicate a mail bomb. 
• An unusual amount of tape 
• Marked with restrictive endorsements:  “Personal,” “Confidential,” “Fragile-Handle with care,” or “Rush-Do Not Delay,” “To be opened in Privacy of….,”  
• Strange odors or stains 

Suspicious Package Procedures  

1. Call Boston Police at 911. Provide the Police Dispatcher with all available information.
2. Do not move, touch, or handle the object.
3. Do not use two-way radios.
4. Do not turn off lights or touch switches.
5. Keep loud noise to a minimum.
6. Restrict use of the telephone to only urgent business.
7. Secure the location.
8. Activate the school’s Site Incident Control Team.
9. Evacuate after determining the safest routes for all building occupants.
10. Communicate the situation and procedures to be followed for evacuation to staff per your School Safety/Contingency Plan (internal communications method).