- @
- Followers:
No Tweets Found
CNN POLITICS ON FACEBOOK » | CNN POLITICS ON TWITTER »
All-clear given in Times Square scare
Police have blocked off parts of Times Square and evacuated people because of a suspicious cooler left in Times Square.
[Updated at 6:06 p.m.] Read the full CNN.com story
[Updated at 2:32 p.m.] Mayor Michael Bloomberg of New York acknowledged after that incident that terrorists have targeted New York.
"We have to take every precaution, as you know, because we remain a prime target for terrorists," he said. "That's something all New Yorkers understand and it's something that we need Washington to understand as well."
"We will continue to doing everything we possibly can to protect New Yorkers from terrorist attacks. We have, as you know, built the most comprehensive and sophisticated counter terrorism operation of any local police force in the world."
[Updated at 2:24 p.m.] An all-clear was declared Friday after authorities investigated a suspicious package left in front of a hotel in Times Square and determined that it contained water bottles, police said.
[Updated at 2:10 p.m.] The New York Police Department has deployed a robot to X-ray the cooler that was abandoned in front of the Marriott Marquis hotel in Times Square, police told CNN's Susan Candiotti.
[Updated at 2:15 p.m.] A bomb squad robot has completed its X-ray of the suspicious cooler left in Times Square, CNN's Susan Candiotti reported. But, the results were inconclusive.
Members of the bomb squad are now suiting up to get a closer look.
iReport.com: Are you there? Send photos, videos
iReport.com: See photos from Times Square
[Updated at 2:01 p.m.] CNN's Ali Velshi who is on 47th Street and Broadway reports: "Times Square is entirely empty" on certain blocks.
[Updated at 1:58 p.m.] Kathy Duffy, who is in her office at the Marriott Marquis hotel, told CNN the Times Square Alliance said there was an abandoned cooler left outside. Duffy said officials told her that the bomb squad was trying to determine if it was a threat. She said that the hotel has not been told to evacuate.
[Updated at 1:51 p.m.] A spokesman for the Times Square Alliance says, according to the NYPD, the following streets are closed:
- East bound on 46th Street from 8th Ave
- West bound on 45th Street from 6th Ave.
- And the Broadway and 7th Avenue plaza between 44th and 47th.
- 44th and 47th Streets themselves are not closed.
[Updated at 1:45 p.m.] The suspicious package that prompted evacuations in New York's Times Square is a white cooler that was left near the front of the Marriott Marquis Hotel, police told CNN.
The area is not far from where Faisal Shahzad left his SUV that had explosives in it.
People were evacuated from the streets of Times Square after a report of a suspicious package.
[Posted at 1:24 p.m.] Times Square has been evacuated after a suspicious package was found near 45th street, a New York Police Department official said.
The package was found near 45th Street and Broadway, officials said.
The evacuation comes six days after an SUV with explosives was left in Times Square resulting in the arrest of Faisal Shahzad.
This story is developing. We'll bring you the latest information as we get it.
@cnnbrk on Twitter
Fly a couple of planes into a couple of buildings and turn NYC into a bunch of running scared cowards...amazing.
Faisal Shahzad cant be the only terrorist in the us ready to kill american. Chew on That! error on the side of caution!
just cuz ur paranoid doesn't mean people aren't tryin to kill you
You'd think, if this is real, that terrorists will realize that there are a lot of cameras around there and today, cellphones and electronic cameras are ubiquitous among pedestrians.
"immediate death penalty should be imposed for all terrorists and anyone related to it they are jeopardizing the lives of innocent people" – Dan
I agree! There should be absolutely ZERO tolerance for these actions.
Hmmm, I bet Israel's to blame for that.....c'mon, where are all the Israel bashers and haters?? come out, come out wherever you are....
Faisal Shahzad cant be the only terrorist in the us ready to kill americans. Chew on That! error on the side of caution!
Get 'em NY.
Let’s hope this is a hoax or if not, is at least as poorly constructed as the car bomb!
The mere fact that we live with such fear tells me that the terrorists have succeeded!
The comments on this page are almost as scary as the bomb. You people are pathetic fools.
btw didnt some guy just get stabbed to death left on the street in nyc and people walked around him and i think someone even kicked at him and left him for dead – if only that guy had left a box next to him someone would have called the cops...
we should just blow pakistan.american muslims should come out and support against this kind of act. if you guys will stand up then americans will have diff picture of all muslim community.
OH MY GOD it was a cooler.
Take every precaution possible ... I'm headed to NY in a week so please keep up the good work!