CINCINNATI -- No one was hurt when an unknown person fired a gun outside a dorm building on the University of Cincinnati campus Monday night, but the shooter is still at large.
"Everyone is safe and no one was injured," UC public safety director James Whalen said after a campus lockdown was lifted.
According to a public safety alert emailed to students that night, university police received a report of a shot fired on campus around 8:20 p.m.
Police were still piecing together what happened Tuesday. UC Police Chief Anthony Carter said it was possible drugs were behind the shooting. Police found marijuana at the scene.
Either way, what happened Monday is not commonplace at UC, Carter said.
"This is an isolated incident that occurred on campus," he said.
Miles Garrett, a student, was picking up a friend near Dabney Hall when the shooting occurred. The friend, he said, was talking to a tall man in gray clothing. At the end of the conversation, the man pulled out a gun and fired.
“It was actually kind of directed toward my friend, but it was more in the air,” Garrett said. “It was a handgun. Small caliber."
Students were ordered to shelter in place while authorities, including the Cincinnati Police Department, fire department and SWAT units, searched for the suspect.
Authorities lifted the lockdown at 9:45 p.m. Officials said they believed the danger had passed.
"It's not something that happens regularly on a college campus, but it doesn't reduce the fact that we still provide a safe environment and will continue to provide those services," Carter said.
Students said the incident wouldn't affect their day-to-day routine.
"For the most part, I feel pretty safe," Conner Bryant said. "I don't think it's going to happen all the time. I'm not going to be scared to walk around campus green and think about getting shot."
