May 7th, 2010
06:06 PM ET

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.

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[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.

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Filed under: Times Square
soundoff (1,087 Responses)
  1. Glad to be Canadian

    One has to wonder, if this is in fact a terrorist act similar to the Shahzad incident, does anyone really think that after the ingenuity that was behind 9/11 that they would be careless enough to be caught if they didn't want to be? I wonder if they aren't trying to determine the governments MO in dealing with these issues by staging several simulated attacks so they can find the government and military's weakness and work that into their next serious terrorist attack. I believe that Faisal Shahzad was caught and his attack "foiled" because it was setup to be. Any other thoughts on this??

    May 7, 2010 at 2:21 pm | Report abuse |
  2. Robbie

    I hope its a cooler full of ice and Dos Equis with a sign attached saying " Stay thirsty my friends" 🙂

    May 7, 2010 at 2:21 pm | Report abuse |
  3. Khaos

    Bomb squad technician: "Ok, I'm opening the cooler...please stand by!"
    Bomb squad technician: "...uh, don't be alarmed folks....it is just a bolgna sandwich!"
    NYPD: "Crap...:

    May 7, 2010 at 2:22 pm | Report abuse |
  4. jami

    I think it's great to be cautious, especially in Times Square. But I really hope it's a cooler filled with deli meat, sodas, and chips.

    May 7, 2010 at 2:22 pm | Report abuse |
  5. Amy

    Somebody's cooler was broken and they were too lazy to dispose of it properly – just like the guy I saw in Kroger's parking lot three nights ago. He was too lazy to take his bag of trash from his truck to a dumpster so he looked around to see if anyone was watching and put it next to the light pole. I would love to add a few other proper descriptions but I don't want to deal with the backlash from telling the truth.

    May 7, 2010 at 2:22 pm | Report abuse |
  6. Whitney

    It makes me sad that you are all saying it's paranoia. Innocent lives are killed when people are lazy, so let them take the precautions. It's foolish to think otherwise.

    May 7, 2010 at 2:22 pm | Report abuse |
  7. Mr Mike

    This is terrible!!! I think I need a beer... where's my cooler... I know I had it here somewhere...
    'Du-ooh!!

    May 7, 2010 at 2:22 pm | Report abuse |
  8. Biff NyC

    I can also guarentee you that it was NOT a NYer that called this in...prob a French tourist

    May 7, 2010 at 2:22 pm | Report abuse |
  9. j1023

    For all you people out there that believe that people are being too paranoid, you obviously learned nothing from 9/11. It is people like you that then complain when more isn't done when something bad does happen.

    May 7, 2010 at 2:22 pm | Report abuse |
  10. Sheep

    HAH WATER BOTTLES

    YOU SEE THAT YOU SHEEP

    May 7, 2010 at 2:22 pm | Report abuse |
  11. amirs shah

    drop a bomb on Pakistan

    the Pakistani government encourages its citizens to be anti americans. They are responsible for inciting this. Till today they have not made any announcements denouncing terrorism. It's all about money.

    May 7, 2010 at 2:22 pm | Report abuse |
  12. Dave Xanatos

    Ya know, eventually the terrorists will realize they don't need to waste their money on real explosives, all they have to do is leave their big empty boxes, coolers and old used luggage around in odd places and we'll spend millions sniffing around them and blowing them up ourselves. They'll bankrupt us using their trash... whodathunkit. I mean, I realize that if you are walking by there YOU'd rather be safe than sorry and all, but when there are 10 of these evacuations a day – then what? Do we really want to bring our lives to a halt every time some piece of junk winds up in a tactically probable location? When does it just get to be ridiculous?

    May 7, 2010 at 2:22 pm | Report abuse |
  13. dontcareforNYimnWA

    its paranoia don't you think these terrorists would set the bomb to go off near people, no one is going to get hurt i am bored watching this, i want some real news if i lived in new york id run past those police and open the damn cooler so i could go shopping its fake get over it its fake ill bet my life on it.

    May 7, 2010 at 2:23 pm | Report abuse |
  14. Laila Saifullah

    I love some of the comments people posted. Trust me, if the terrorist really wanted to do something, they are smarter than this.

    The stock market went down by a 1000 points yesterday. The system needed something to distract the already- mentally- vegetated -American- masses, in my humble view.

    i just wish our hard earned money, as part of tax dollars, won't be wasted on frivolous scare tactics like such...

    If this is the way some of us are supposed to go, that's of course if the threat was actually real, that's how we will go...what's the big deal?

    May 7, 2010 at 2:23 pm | Report abuse |
  15. Ian

    You can tell it's scary by all the people standing at the edge of the barricade trying to get a better look.

    May 7, 2010 at 2:23 pm | Report abuse |
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