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The
item in question was described in a late-afternoon update from
the Salt Lake City Police department as "an organic agricultural
product," but no further official information about the object
was provided.
Police were first alerted to the object by a 911 emergency call
shortly before 8 a.m. local time, and patrol officers arriving
on the scene summoned the police hazardous devices unit, a
police spokesperson said.
Ultimately, investigators from the city fire department, county
bomb squad, health department, the Utah National Guard and the
FBI joined police in evaluating the situation, and the U.S. Bank
Tower, located adjacent to the suspicious object, was fully
evacuated as a precaution, according to the spokesperson,
Sergeant Mark Wian.
Occupants of other nearby businesses were urged to "shelter in
place," while a number of roads in the immediate vicinity were
closed to traffic during the alert, Wian said.
The police department released a statement nearly eight hours
later announcing an all-clear, saying its hazardous devices unit
determined the item was "not a threat to the community." The
statement also said the unit "rendered safe" the suspicious
object, but offered no clarification.
“We train extensively for these types of situations,” police
Chief Mike Brown said in the statement. “Our response today
underscores the responsiveness and readiness of our officers and
detectives."
(Reporting by Steve Gorman in Los Angeles; editing by Rami Ayyub
and Michael Perry)
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