A bomb threat forced ABC7 to evacuate its Glendale studio Wednesday and broadcast its afternoon newscast from outside the building.
A caller contacted the station at 1:52 p.m. and said there were several bombs in the building at 500 Circle Seven Drive, off Flower Street, which was evacuated along with several other buildings in the vicinity.
A stretch of Flower Street was closed to traffic.
#Breaking @MyGlendale PD say a male caller said there are multiple bombs inside @abc7. Building evacuated. pic.twitter.com/wUMikZTz9A
— Elex Michaelson (@ABC7Elex) September 30, 2015
As officers with bomb-sniffing dogs searched the building, which is also home of the West Coast bureau of ABC News, the Channel 7 staff massed outside.
David Ono, standing alongside co-anchor Ellen Leyva, told viewers at the top of the 4 p.m. newscast: "We've never done this before ... I've never been in a situation like this before. What you've been seeing on social media, what you've been hearing is true. ABC7 is under a bomb threat, and as a result, we have evacuated the building.
"We can't be in the studio, we can't utilize a lot of our facilities, but what we have done is mobilized our entire staff, brought them out here. We're literally sitting on the lawn, ready to give you the news as best as we can give you the news," he said.
Here's a shot of our empty newsroom following the evacuation http://t.co/SYEJIocjPe pic.twitter.com/ryBt9Ik9zQ
— ABC7 Eyewitness News (@ABC7) September 30, 2015
"It's a highly unique situation, so we are getting an education on what it's like to be part of a bomb threat," Ono said.
Police with bomb-sniffing dogs searched the building and surrounding grounds but did not find any suspicious items. The all-clear was given about 4:30 p.m.
#Breaking Bomb sniffing dogs didn't find any bombs. All clear! Employees returning after evacuation. pic.twitter.com/yumi5qqt2U
— Elex Michaelson (@ABC7Elex) September 30, 2015
