Cops, EMS, FDNY and counter terrorism flooded Pelham Bay this morning as a suspicious package was reported.
But by 11:30 a.m. the pressure cooker that was found in front of Ralph Giordano Funeral Home at 1727 Crosby Ave., was deemed an invert object by the NYPD.
Residents crowded the street as a member of the bomb squad dressed in full gear, checked to see if it was real or a hoax. Fortunately, it was the latter.
The funeral home’s office manager, Jeannie Walker, told the Bronx Times someone called the police to tell them there was a suspicious package at the front of her business. Police asked her for access to the security cameras when she arrived around 8:30 a.m. Walker did not know who contacted the police.
According to Walker, the police observed someone dropping the pressure cooker in front of the funeral home on the camera.
Norma Rodriguez, a nearby resident, said last night around 10:30 p.m. she witnessed a man throwing a pressure cooker in the trash at 1723 Crosby Ave. She did not think anything of it until this morning when she realized it was the same one.
“I said, ‘oh a pressure cooker I have one’ and I just kept walking the dog,” Rodriguez said. “I was shocked. I heard the helicopter and said maybe I need to evacuate. It’s really upsetting because we live in crazy times.”
