24th Street firms evacuated after bomb threat

Several businesses in the 200 block of West 24th Street were evacuated for just over an hour Friday afternoon after someone with one of the companies phoned Yuma police and reported that it had received a bomb threat.

According to Officer Joe Franklin of the Yuma Police Department, officers conducted an intense search of the area, first using a robot equipped with cameras, and then by officers on foot, but no explosive device was found anywhere in the vicinity.

Franklin said the Yuma police received a call from one of the businesses in the Century Plaza at about 3:40 p.m. reporting it had received a call about a possible bomb being located between their business and the one across from it.

“They immediately called 911 and reported to us and evacuated their building,” Franklin said. “The person who called us did not see any item when they evacuated.”

Yuma police blocked off 24th Street between 4th Avenue and 1st Avenue and Virginia Drive between 23rd Street and 25th Streets and evacuated all of the surrounding buildings while they conducted their search of the area.

“There are numerous buildings in the area, so we evacuated a decent amount of people,” Franklin said. “It is better to be safe than sorry with something like this.”

At about 5:15 p.m., employees from the businesses in the area were allowed to return to their buildings and the streets were reopened. Motorists and passers-by in the area during that time saw a massive police presence while the area was closed off.

Franklin said YPD will continue its investigation into the incident.

James Gilbert can be reached at jgilbert@yumasun.com or 539-6854. Find him on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/YSJamesGilbert or on Twitter @YSJamesGilbert.