By Ben Fractenberg and Sonja Sharp
DNAinfo Staff
MIDTOWN — Reports of a suspicious package near the United Nations forced a brief evacuation of a block of East 44th Street Wednesday afternoon.
The package, which looked like a duffel bag with a note attached, was first reported at noon at the corner of East 44th Street and First Avenue. It was taken away by NYPD bomb investigators about an hour later. It turned out to contain "miscellaneous papers" and was deemed safe, police said.
During the investigation, East 44th Street between First and Second avenues was evacuated. Workers were told to remain inside their office buildings, and keep away from the side that faced the street.
Steve Raneri, who works for the United Nations Children's Fund, or UNICEF, at 338 East 44th Street, said he saw the package while having a cigarette outside his building before police arrived. There was a note on it, but he couldn't make out what it said.
"It looked like a bunch of random words," Raneri, 38, of Long Island, said.
He said it reminded him of an incident at Unicef a couple weeks ago, when a note was found on the entrance with words that "didn’t make sense."
"They were similar in that way," Raneri said.
Police arrived, and told him and colleague to go back inside. Anyone with offices on the side of the building that faced the street were ordered to move to the other side.
Police sealed the block with yellow tape, enclosing halal food cart vendor Larbi Rahli in the evacuation zone. He continued cooking chicken at his spot at the corner of East 44th Street and First Avenue while the bomb squad went to work. He said he wasn't worried at all.
"I've seen it many times," he said.
