Traffic across downtown Washington was snarled after law enforcement officials shut down the area surrounding McPherson Square Thursday afternoon because of several suspicious containers on the corner of 15th and K streets.
The seven containers containing chlorine and a black duffel bag were deemed a “credible threat” by federal officials, said D.C. Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department spokesman Alan Etter. Local and federal law enforcement agencies responded around 11:30 a.m. and cleared the area by 4 p.m..
Patricia Carmon, an employee of Loeb’s Deli, located across the street from the containers, said they belong to a homeless man who often sits with them on a nearby bench.
Etter said employees had told him about the homeless man, and added that “there is a set procedure that has to be adhered to whenever a situation like that occurs.”
