Statue of Liberty to Reopen After Evacuation of Hundreds of Visitors Post Bomb Threat

New York’s Statue of Liberty has been deemed safe and is set to reopen after hundreds of tourists were evacuated from the place as a precaution due to a bomb threat. According to National Park Service, a 911 caller said that the Statue of Liberty was going to be blown, reported BBC. Throngs of visitors were evacuated from the Statue of Liberty Friday after a caller threatened to blow up the landmark tourist attraction and a suspicious package was detected by a police dog, officials said.

After the bomb threat targeting the iconic statue was called in about 11 a.m., United States Park Police canine units swept the island, officials said. A dog picked up a suspicious scent while patrolling visitor lockers in a screening area at the base of the statue just before 12:30 p.m., according to a spokeswoman for the Park Police.

The island was evacuated when sniffer dogs found "an area of interest" at the statue’s base, near lockers. The area was declared safe after a sweep, late in the afternoon.

Ferries were postponed after a suspicious package was found by officials at Liberty Island, said Statue Cruises, which takes tourists to the Statue of Liberty National Monument and Ellis Island. All visitors and non-emergency workers were rushed on ferries off Liberty Island and back to Battery Park and and Liberty State Park in Jersey City, officials said.

Nobody was hurt in the evacuation. The NYPD bomb squad swept the island.

Source-ANI