Another day, another suspicious package grinding our daily activities to a halt here in Los Angeles. This morning's culprit was a package found at about 8 this morning at the federal building in Downtown. more ›

A bomb scare closed down a pier at the Port of Long Beach this morning for six hours, after an overseas package was found with the word "bomb" written across the top, reports KCBS. The area was cordoned off by security and a bomb squad was called in to examine the package. more ›

A white Cadillac is at the center of an investigation this morning after a suspicious package was found inside the abandoned vehicle, and the bomb squad called out. Police evacuated residents from the area where the car was parked near West Vernon and 9th avenues, reports LA Now. more ›

Typically quite crowded during the midday hours, right now the Burbank Town Center mall has been out of reach to shoppers coming in via local streets following the discover of a suspicious package. "First Street, Magnolia and several surrounding streets have been shut down while officers investigate a backpack left behind on a bus stop," says CBS2. "Traffic any where in the vicinity of Burbank Media Mall in all directions is STOPPED Don't even try PD EVERYWHERE..." Tweeted Burbank Times (via MrVince78). more ›

The area near Third Street and Wilshire Blvd. in Santa Monica was evacuated after a suspicious package was found in a dumpster between 3rd and 4th Streets, according to Santa Monica Patch. Several other streets were closed off while Santa Monica Police Department and the Los Angeles Bomb Squad investigated further. Nick Wilson, writer for LAist, was part of the nearby lockdown and said police tape was up when he arrived to work at 8 a.m. but that the tape has just been removed and that the package is being described as "not a bomb" but a "prop." The story is developing. 12:21 P.M. UPDATE: The bomb in question was a fake bomb that "was most likely a move prop mistakenly thrown away." Officers on the scene indicate it looked real with sticks of dynamite wrapped together with black tape and wires coming out at the top. more ›

The bomb squad has been deployed to check out a "suspicious container" tied to a tree in Sherman Oaks, police said today. A coffee can-sized container tied to a palm tree with wires and batteries protruding on the southeast corner of Ventura and Sepulveda (map) -- that's catty corner to the Sherman Oaks Galleria -- was reported to the LAPD around 1:45 p.m. Police activity is affecting traffic at the intersection, which is one of the most traveled in the San Fernando Valley. more ›

As if there wasn't enough hinky traffic today. A suspicious package prompted the LAPD to close down streets around the intersection of Echo Park and Sunset boulevards this afternoon. Luckily by around 4:30 p.m., traffic slowly crawled back to its normal crawl once police destroyed the package and deemed the area safe. At around 3:30 p.m., police were notified of the suspicious package in the parking lot at Walgreens. more ›

A building at USC has been evacuated after a suspicious package was reported to authorities, University officials said in an alert to students. Students were warned to stay away from the The Hedco Neuro Sciences at Watt and Downey Way (map). Campus security and LAPD were taping portions of campus off, including up to 34th Street and Trousdale (map), according to the Daily Trojan's twitter. Update: The suspicious package, which is a paper envelope, was reported at 1:14 p.m., said to LAPD Officer Gregory Baek. Update #2, 2:58 p.m: USC officials say the situation has been cleared and the suspicious packaged "checked OK." more ›

A vehicle found on fire with a body inside this morning on a Studio City/Valley Village street has now turned into a bomb squad situation. Upon investigation, "some sort of wire" was found underneath the body, prompting them to call the bomb squad, according to a LAPD spokesperson. Because the vehicle was found in an underpass on Radford Street (map), the 101 Freeway may be shut down, warned KNX1070, which states a possible "Intermittent closure of the 101 freeway in both directions between the 134 freeway & Woodman." more ›

It's been a long time since The Carpenters had a single that exploded on the charts, but yesterday in Cypress the police thought they had an explosive on their hands that turned out to be a Carpenters record, according to the OC Register. more ›

The immediate area around North Hollywood High School has been shut down by the LAPD after a suspicious package was reported to them this morning. At 6:12 a.m., police received a call from LAUSD police officers who found a box with wires coming out of it at the front entrance. more ›

An office building on Hollywood's Walk of Fame was evacuated this afternoon after suspicious items were found inside. At 2 p.m., the LAPD received a call about suspicious items found inside an inactive safe deposit box, apparently inside a bank. That prompted police to evacuate the building, which shares ground floor retail with Hooters and American Apparel, as the bomb squad was called. LAPD Officer Bruce Borihanh said there were no threats associated with the event. As of 3:45 p.m., the scene was not cleared, Borihanh said. more ›

An unattended bag left in the Tomorrowland area prompted security and police to clear the immediate area this afternoon. Reported around 4 p.m., the bag was found outside the Tomorrowland Theatre where Michael Jackson's Captain E.O. is shown. A sheriff's spokesman told the OC Register that “the circumstances were suspicious enough” to call out the bomb squad. Around 5:30, park-goers were allowed back in the area after the bag was determined to be a "soft-sided ice chest with wheels, containing parishable food items." more ›

Apparently, a suspicious package was reported in Venice yesterday, prompting the LAPD to shut down the area around Market Street, reports neighborhood blog Yo! Venice. "As you can see in the pictures, it appears they diffused a skateboard by blowing it up. Better safe than sorry we assume, so thanks for 'lookin’ out,' LAPD." In the end, it was a false alarm and no one was hurt. A robot took the package to Ocean Front Walk before destroying it. According to a forum discussion, it was a package full of skateboard parts. more ›

A suspicious package left on the street has prompted the police to shut down a portion of Melrose Avenue, says the LAPD. A call came in at 10:50 a.m. reporting the item near Melrose and Genesee, according to Officer Rosario Herrera. As of 11:50 a.m., the investigation was still active as the bomb squad investigated. The immediate area was shut down to the public. more ›

An apparent phoned-in bomb threat prompted USC officials and LAPD to close a portion of the campus and surrounding streets down this afternoon. Although sources tell the LA Times it was believed to be a false report, officials had to act with precaution and shut down areas while searching for the apparent bomb. A suspicious package was located in the Leavey Library building. more ›

A bag left at a Chase Bank in Westwood prompted the closure of the immediate area and a bomb squad response late this morning. At 11:43 a.m., the LAPD was notified of the bag, which was left at the bank by a customer who did not return to pick it up. As of 1:25 p.m., streets in the area were shut down, according to Officer Gregory Beck. "Traffic is awful," bemoaned one Twitter user. Standard operating procdure in these cases are to shut down streets three to four blocks from the suspicious item. more ›

And for the third suspicious package of the day, the UCLA Police Department this afternoon shut down three levels of Parking Structure 8 after they were notified of a "suspicious briefcase placed behind a trash can on the top level," according to an UCLA advisory. The walkways just west of Spaulding Field and those south of parking structure are also closed. Traffic is blocked along Strathmore Drive between Westwood Plaza and Gayley Avenue. The LAPD's bomb squad was requested at 12:55 p.m. and is currently investigating, according to the LAPD. Earlier, a suspicious device was detonated in Universal City and an investigation near Sunset and Fairfax is ongoing. *UPDATE, 2:40 p.m.: And the situation has been cleared. "Sometimes a briefcase is...just a briefcase," UCLA's newsroom tweeted. more ›

A suspicious package found on the 7800 block of Sunset Boulevard was reported to police at 11:09 a.m. this morning, according to the LAPD. The investigation is ongoing with the bomb squad en route. Various streets around the area are shut down. Earlier today, a suspicious device was detonated in Universal City. (thanks for the tip, @juliabetley!). *UPDATE, 5:08 p.m.: The suspicious package, actually an empty suitcase, was cleared around 3:30 p.m. more ›

Around 3 p.m., LAPD officers responded to the 4200 block of Ethel Avenue in Studio City, between Ventura Blvd. and the Los Angeles River. A "suspicious package" was reported, prompting street closures and a call to the bomb squad. No word yet on the outcome of the situation, according to LAPD officials. more ›

A suspicious package found on the 13600 block of Ventura Boulevard in Sherman Oaks has prompted the closure of main artery between Woodman and Dixie Canyon in addition to some surrounding streets. A call was made to police at 4:11 p.m. and as of 6:15 p.m., police were still on scene, according to LAPD Media Relations. UPDATE: The package ended up being multiple key chains in a box. more ›

USC Officials are reporting, via Trojans Alert, that a suspicious package found two blocks from campus has prompted the immediate evacuation of the area around 35th Place and Budlong. "Stay away," officials urge. UPDATE: "The suspicious device call near USC turned out to be a pipe bomb," tweeted KTLA. USC officials say LAPD is still on scene investigating and that most of the neighborhood has been reopened. more ›

Since this morning, one block of Wilshire Boulevard has been closed to traffic. Police were alerted at 8 a.m. to a suspicious bag left on the 3600 block of Wilshire, prompting the usual response by the LAPD--close the area down, send out the bomb squad. Officer Rosario Herrera said there is no word when the street will be reopened. more ›

There goes traffic. Wilshire Boulevard is closed in the Westwood area for a half-mile stretch between Comstock to the east and Warner to west because of two suspicious backpacks, according to reports. [Update, 3:35 p.m.: Traffic has opened back up on Wilshire, but the investigation is still ongoing. The bomb squad was called out earlier, but their status is unknown at this point.] more ›

Another day, another suspicious package. Unattended luggage caused officials to evacuate a portion of LAX this morning. Shortly after 11 a.m., the bag sitting next to a Tom Bradley Int'l Terminal ticketing counter and bearing no name tags began emitting an alarm-type sound. Airport police cleared the area, moving about 500 travelers and employees into the streets. The LAPD bomb squad arrived and via an X-Ray machine, determined the sound was coming from a megaphone. 50 minutes later, operations were back to normal. LAX officials say there's a good lesson here: make sure all your bags, including carry-ons, are tagged with your name and info. Whoever's bag this was will likely never see it again. more ›

At about 12:30 p.m., a suspicious package prompted police to shut down the area round Santa Monica Blve and Avenue of the Stars in Century City. The bomb squad responded, but as of 2:45 p.m., there was no word on the status of the incident, according to LAPD Media Relations. This unfortunately is a regular occurrence. The area around the Federal Building has been shut down a handful of times in the past and City Hall on Monday afternoon after suspicious packages were noticed. It should be emphasized that suspicious packages are not bomb threats as rumored on Twitter. A bomb threat is basically when someone calls in the threat, according to the LAPD. A suspicious package is something noticed by a citizen or authority and makes the police aware of its location. UPDATE: As of 3:21 p.m., LAPD Media Relations was notified that the incident was cleared. more ›

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