All Clear Given At Picatinny Arsenal After Suspicious Vehicle Prompts Evacuation
PICATINNY ARSENAL, N.J. (CBSNewYork) -- An all clear was given at Picatinny Arsenal in northern New Jersey Friday, hours after after a suspicious truck and driver prompted a security scare.
Several area roads were closed around the arsenal which is about 35 miles west of New York City.
At around 11:30 a.m. Friday, an unauthorized driver tried to get through the post gate, Army officials said.
All Clear Given At Picatinny Arsenal After Suspicious Vehicle Prompts Evacuation
At that time security personnel noticed something suspicious with the vehicle and are treating the situation as if it were an explosive threat, Army officials said.
The driver is in custody and was still being questioned as of late Friday evening, CBS2's Weijia Jiang reported. No explosive device was found in the vehicle, according to Army officials.
But local, state, and federal response teams – including the FBI – treated the situation as a potential bomb threat.
Arsenal employees were instructed to leave the post shortly before 2 p.m. Some 6,000 employees had to leave -- most of them civilians.
"It's a frightening time we're living in," said Richard Dalland of neighboring Wharton Township.
Route 15 in the area was closed for a few hours, prompting a traffic backup for miles.
"I had to take back roads and even the back roads are jammed," a woman said. "It's packed all over."
The road reopened shortly after 5 p.m., according to Jefferson Township police.
There were no evacuations in town as a result of the incident at Picatinny, police said.
Moses Villarrubia told WCBS 880's Peter Haskell he was "scared" during the evacuation, and understands the arsenal could be a target.
"We take for granted that Picatinny has an arsenal there, and most of the good weapons come from there," Villarrubia said.
He has been through security.
"They have mirrors that go underneath your car or your truck, so it's pretty intense," Villarrubia said.
In Wharton Township, some people were still shaken over the scare.
"It definitely worried me. My neighbors were talking about how the bomb could, you know, like, travel, you know, and be, like, a really big one," said Brittany Kling of Wharton. "So I was afraid, even just coming home -- being so close, it definitely worried me."
But others said Picatinny should be an attacker's last target, given the amount of security measures obviously in place.
"It is pretty scary, but I know that the government does their best to keep that safe. Because I've had my car -- they go under with the mirrors, they ask you to get out, they inspect your car," said Noelle Walton of Wharton.
A month ago, two Army civilian employees were injured in an explosion at Picatinny Arsenal.
Picatinny Arsenal is the Joint Center of Excellence for Armaments and Munitions, providing products and services to all branches of the U.S. military, according to its website.
Picatinny comprises nearly 90 percent of the Army's lethality and all conventional ammunition for joint warfighters, according to its website.
A flight restriction of eight miles around Picatinny has also been issued, CBS2's Joe Biermann reported.
The flight restriction is in effect until Saturday.
