Apr 17, 2007 1:34 pm US/Mountain
Virginia Tech Alum Tom Mustin Talks About Shooting
By Tracy Stientjes, cbs4denver.com intern.
DENVER (CBS4) ―
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CBS4 5 a.m., 6 a.m. and 12 p.m. anchor Tom Mustin graduated from Virginia Tech.
CBS
CBS4 anchor Tom Mustin is a graduate of Virginia Tech. He spoke to assignment editor Doug Hoffacker about his thoughts on Monday's shooting on the campus of Virginia Tech.
"Blacksburg is the quintessential sleepy college town," he said. "It's the last place in the world you would ever expect this to happen."
Mustin said that while the student population is 25,000, Blacksburg is a tiny town with only about 2,000 full time residents. The nearest large city is Roanoke, which is about 45 minutes away.
He said that the Drill Field is a popular spot in the middle of campus that students flock to. Because of the nor'easter, the field was empty on Monday.
"At any given time, you can find hundreds of students throwing Frisbees on the drill field," he said.
Mustin said the fact that the field was empty probably saved a lot of lives, because the gunman would have had to walk through the field to get from Ambler Johnston Hall to Norris Hall.
Virginia Tech was a military school, and is now a well-known engineering and agriculture school. Mustin said people that he has talked to are wondering if this tragedy will affect enrollment. Everyone he has talked to will continue to stay at the school.
Mustin's niece is a sophomore at Virginia Tech, but was unharmed.
"She was on a commuter bus into the campus," he said. "The bus driver stopped the bus right outside the campus and said that classes were cancelled."
She found out about the tragedy after calling friends who were on campus.
There are some students from Colorado several alumni in the state. There is a memorial at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Bethany Lutheran Church in Cherry Hills Village.
"Our heart goes out to the students," Mustin said. "I can't even tell you how surreal this is. It's a tragedy that will go on for many, many years at the university."
(© MMVII CBS Television Stations, Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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