By: Greg Knight, News of the North
NOTN- Ketchikan police shut down the Visitor’s Bureau on Front Street Wednesday morning after a suspicious device was discovered on a wooden bench outside the building.
Officers responded around 8:12 a.m. and worked with Port Security to establish a perimeter. Video footage from inside the building was reviewed while the area remained closed to the public. A Carnival cruise ship was docked nearby at the time, but passengers had not yet disembarked. They were instructed to stay onboard and avoid the port side of the vessel closest to the device.
Police photographed the device and consulted with an Explosive Ordnance Disposal technician, who determined it was safe to move. Officers then removed it and secured it off-site.
The area reopened and operations returned to normal at 9:47 a.m. The Ketchikan Police Department says it maintained communication with the U.S. Coast Guard during the incident. The case remains under active investigation until the device can be fully examined by an EOD specialist
