On the River, numerous upperclassmen had the same idea.
Ian E. Ochs ’15 spent much of the afternoon in Eliot courtyard, figuring that the gated area would be safe while still allowing him and his friends to avoid the “feeling of being cooped up and helpless.”
The danger that remained in other parts of greater Boston was not lost on Ochs and his friends, who kept abreast of the news through Twitter, Reddit, and even the police scanner on their phones and computers.
Despite the anxiety created by following the news, Ochs said he appreciated the “really nice day.”
“It was definitely more relaxing to get outside,” he added.
When the drama created by the manhunt culminated shortly before 9 p.m. Friday with the arrest of 19-year-old Dzhokar A. Tsarnaev, who was hiding in a boat in Watertown, students at Harvard—just a few miles away—breathed a sigh of relief.
In contrast to the flag-bearing crowds who took over Boston Common in celebration Friday evening, Harvard Square remained relatively quiet. Catharsis, not jubilance, marked the day’s end.
“I think it was more relief than celebration,” said Ochs, who watched the end of the manhunt with a group of around 20 people gathered at Eliot Grille. “After all, it was very sad.”
On Saturday morning, after the dust from the day-long manhunt had settled, University President Drew G. Faust sent an email to the entire Harvard community expressing gratitude towards law enforcement and sympathy towards the victims of the marathon bombing and the chase for its suspects,
“Even as we confront the horror of what humans can do, we see as well the majesty of what people can be, as they take risks and make efforts for others and for something beyond themselves,” Faust wrote. “The trauma of this violence so close to home will not quickly fade; it will affect each one of us in ways we must face together.”
In her email, Faust thanked the Harvard University Police Department for assisting local police during the lockdown.
“Times like these test our resilience and call forth our humanity,” she wrote. “To the many people across Harvard who have worked under extraordinary circumstances to maintain the University’s operations, to secure our campus, to console and assist others, and to keep our community strong, I offer thanks from us all.”
—Laya Anasu and Nicholas P. Fandos contributed to the reporting of this story.
—Staff writer Samuel Y. Weinstock can be reached at sweinstock@college.harvard.edu. Follow him on Twitter @syweinstock.