Master Police Officer Thomas Eggers of the Fairfax County Police Department walks back to his truck to examine images after X-raying the suspicious package while wearing a protective bomb suit. Photo by Fallon Forbush.
The third day of the Herndon Festival ended on a temporary note of alarm when a “suspicious package” was brought to the attention of the Herndon Police Department just after the fireworks display.
The culprit: A forgotten backpack.
Without knowing what was inside the backpack, police quietly barricaded the 700 block of Elden Street between Spring and Center streets just after 10 p.m. before the festival was to close for the night at 11 o’clock.
The Fairfax County Police Department’s Special Operations Division Explosive Ordnance Disposal team arrived on scene shortly thereafter.
“There’s a suspicious package and we’re going to take care of it,” 2nd Lt. Lance Schaible, an officer with the FCPD, said after he exited his vehicle on the scene. “As long as we keep the street clear, we’ll be fine,” he added later.
People inside the O’Sullivan’s Irish Pub were evacuated and large crowds of people exiting the festival from Station Street were confused as they were diverted away from the barricade zone.
Once the festival crowds dispersed, police extended the barricade further east down Elden Street to Lynn Street. Patrons inside Jimmy’s Old Town Tavern and Copan Restaurant were not disturbed. However, entrances from the establishments onto Elden Street were restricted.
FCPD Master Police Officer Thomas Eggers was sent into the barricade in a protective bomb suit. He exited and went back in a second time, just as someone who was unaware of the situation walked right out of a side door of Jimmy’s Old Town Tavern within feet of the officer.
She was quickly called out to a safe area and was brought up to speed.
“Eggers X-rayed the bag the first time and determined nothing dangerous was inside. He then went back in and inspected by hand,” Schaible said. “It turns out it was miscellaneous items.”
The barricade was lifted shortly after midnight.
“We couldn’t leave it without checking it,” Herndon Police Chief Maggie DeBoard, said once the situation was diffused. “Obviously, we called the county bomb technicians out here to safely deal with it and they were able to determine that there was nothing threatening inside the backpack. But in the meantime, we had to clear the area and make sure that it was away from anybody where it could have caused a problem.”
The department has faced similar situations before. In fact, a suspicious package event happened the previous day just before the festival was to open for its second day, according to DeBoard.
“We cannot take the risk when we have crowds like this,” she said.