Empire Center Walmart evacuated after alleged phone threat
Shoppers at the Walmart in the Empire Center in Burbank were evacuated from the store Tuesday after an employee received a threatening phone call, according to police.
The incident was first reported around 1:20 p.m. after the employee received a suspicious phone call regarding an explosive device at the store.
Sgt. Derek Green, a spokesman for the Burbank Police Department, said in a statement that it was the store’s decision to evacuate shoppers before police arrived.
Parts of the parking lot near the store were then closed off to pedestrian and vehicular traffic as a safety measure, he said.
Police brought in bomb-sniffing dogs to help in searching the store and were unable to find a device.
By 3:45 p.m., the area was deemed safe and the store was reopened to customers.
No injuries were reported at the store and it’s unknown who made the phone call. The incident remains under investigation.
