Bomb threat spurs evacuation of Senate building

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Several floors of the Dirksen Senate Office Building were evacuated shortly after noon on Tuesday, after police received a bomb threat, authorities said.

{mosads} U.S. Capitol Police searched SD-340, a room on the third floor of the building, for a suspicious package, according to spokeswoman Lt. Kimberly Schneider.

A spokesman for Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) tweeted:

SD-340 is the main office of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.

A committee hearing on the Transportation Security Administration was being held nearby, in Room 342, when the threat was made.

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), chairman of the committee, interrupted testimony to clear the chamber at the instruction of Capitol Police.

The TSA has been under intense scrutiny since a report last week found that employees failed to catch undercover agents trying sneak fake explosives and weapons through security.

Before the room was cleared, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) called that report “unacceptable.”

Another report from a government watchdog released Monday found that the agency failed to identify dozens of employees potentially linked to terrorism. 

The Senate Sergeant at Arms lifted the evacuation after an investigation.

— This breaking news report was last updated at 1:32 p.m.

Tags Bernie Sanders Ron Johnson Tom Carper U.S. Capitol

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