Quantcast

The DNAinfo archives brought to you by WNYC.
Read the press release here.

Bogus Bomb Threat Causes Evacuation of Statue of Liberty, Officials Say

By  Sybile Penhirin and Gwynne Hogan | April 24, 2015 1:25pm 

 A security sweep was being done on the island on Friday morning, officials said.
A security sweep was being done on the island on Friday morning, officials said.
View Full Caption
DNAinfo/Nikhita Venugopal

LIBERTY ISLAND — A bogus bomb threat to the Statue of Liberty Friday afternoon prompted authorities to evacuate the island, a National Park Service spokeswoman said.

Lady Liberty was immediately evacuated after bomb-sniffing dogs got a hit at the base of the statue about 11 a.m., which led to the entire island being evacuated, spokeswoman Mindi Rambo said.

The NYPD bomb squad was called in to help with the situation Friday afternoon but by about 3 p.m. the device was determined to be a dud.

2,700 tourists were evacuated from Liberty Island following the threat, said a spokesman for Statue Cruises, the company that runs the ferries to Liberty and Ellis Islands. Some drifted in the harbor for hours, waiting to dock, passengers said.

Disappointed tourists streamed off boats in Battery Park bewildered by the experience. 

"We just got there, taken about two pictures," said Rod Applebey, 62, who was visiting the island from with his 27-year-old daughter Sarah from Saskatchewan, Canada. "We saw a gentleman in a uniform telling everybody to move towards the dock."

Applebey said the evacuation process was calm and orderly, though he and his daughter floated about the bay for upwards of an hour. Despite the wait, the Applebey said they weren't fazed by the evacuation.

"This was a bit of an adventure," he said. 

Houston couple Michelle Passmore, 42, and Norbert Seanez, 50, had also just arrived at the national park site when they were told they had to leave.

"When the boat came to get us, we saw a SWAT team get off," Passmore said. With their sightseeing for the day shot, the couple decided to pack it in and get something to eat.

"Now we're just going to get pizza," Passmore said.

All passengers were safely on land by 2:30 p.m. and by 3:10 p.m. bomb squads had determined the coast was clear, workers from the Office of Emergency Management at the scene said. 

Statue Cruises said service to Liberty Island would return to normal on Saturday morning at 8:30 a.m.

Videos and photos published on social media showed dozens of persons waiting in line to be ferried off the island while it was being searched.