A device found attached to a phone booth prompting evacuations and road closures on the street in Linden has been determined a hoax.
According to authorities, the incident happened on Tuesday night, at approximately 6:00 p.m., when the Linden Police Department responded to the1100 block of West St. George Avenue on a report of a suspicious device in the area.
Authorities said officers arrived and located the device then immediately began to clear the area in agreement with standard operating procedures.
Police closed W. St. George Ave between North Stiles Street and Ross Street where nearly 200 residents from two apartment buildings were evacuated.
Multiple emergency responder agencies responded from local, county, state and federal levels including the Union County Bomb Squad, who disrupted the device at approximately 8:30 p.m. authorities sais.
"As is standard practice for incidents of this nature, the FBI was notified and responded" according to a spokesperson for the Linden Police Department.
Authorities sais at approximately 9:45 p.m. the scene was declared safe and residents were allowed to return to their homes.
We are confident that this incident was isolated and there is no further danger to the public.
"Although this device was determined not to contain actual explosives, additional authorities said additional police units were deployed to sweep the area, including critical infrastructure facilities, for other devices and did not locate any," the spokesperson said.
West St. George Avenue remained closed, and the incident is under investigation by the Linden Police Detective Bureau.
Anyone with information regarding this incident is encouraged to contact them at (908) 474-8537.