All Clear Given After Newtown Church Was Evacuated Due To Threat
NEWTOWN, Conn. (CBSNewYork) - Mourners still shaken by Friday's deadly school shooting were forced to evacuate a church on Sunday, after a bomb threat was reportedly called in to St. Rose of Lima Roman Catholic Church.
Police have since given the all clear, but at least a dozen police officers dressed in camouflage SWAT gear and carrying guns searched the church and adjacent buildings for an hour before announcing it was safe.
Police Lt. Paul Vance said Sunday afternoon that officers thoroughly searched the rectory.
The content of the threat was not known, and remained under investigation Sunday afternoon, Vance said.
Mourners were starting to file into the church for the second mass when it was abruptly canceled due to the threat.
1010 WINS' Glenn Schuck reports
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One woman was taken away by ambulance due to an anxiety attack, the New York Daily News reported.
Police said the church will be on lockdown for the remainder of the day.
The church is near Sandy Hook Elementary School, where 26 people, including 20 young children, were fatally shot by 20-year-old Adam Lanza on Friday morning.
Shooter Adam Lanza, his mother and eight of the child victims attended St. Rose of Lima. The church also has an adjacent school, which Lanza attended briefly, according to the Associated Press.
Eight funerals have already been planned at the church for later in the week.
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