Police: Package Deemed Safe After Staten Island Ferry Terminal Evacuation

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Staten Island Ferry service was temporarily suspended Sunday afternoon, after a suspicious package scare at the Manhattan terminal.

Police responded to a call for a suspicious package, at the South Ferry terminal on Whitehall Street, at about 3:30 p.m. The terminal was evacuated and crowds spilled onto the streets of lower Manhattan.

Ferries were halted in both directions.

"We got on the 3 o'clock ferry on the Staten Island side, we're waiting to pull out, and they announce that there's a police incident at Whitehall," one rider said. "And then they did two or three announcements and they all said we had to evacuate the ferry."

Police cleared the area and service resumed about a half hour later.

A security guard inside terminal said the scare occurred when a police dog was alerted by bag.

In:
• Staten Island
• Suspicious Package
• Manhattan
• New York