A suspicious package was deemed “safe” after police received a report on Thursday afternoon near the seating area by Father Duffy Square at 12:15 pm.
Officers from the Midtown South Precinct cordoned off and evacuated areas in Times Square along 7th Avenue from 45th Street to 48th Street when they received a call after someone discarded a small tin box by the red steps of Father Duffy Square.
Onlookers gathered as first responders investigated the scene but for those enjoying the day it was no spectator sport.
Denise Pensky is staying at the Renaissance Times Square hotel, and as she walked by the TKTS Discount booth in Times Square, she said that she saw police pushing people back after there was panic over a package being thrown into a seating area.
“I was here when everything started to happen. The police pushed us all back block to block telling us it was for our own safety. They even had a dog with the gear on to sniff the package,” Pensky said.
The NYPD Bomb Squad and K9 units arrived at the scene, and after an hour the NYPD released a statement via Twitter that “the package in Times Square has been cleared and deemed to be not suspicious.”
