"No Threat" Identified Following Incident at SEPTA Station

The Montgomery County bomb squad used explosives to detonate a suitcase left on a SEPTA train at the Lansdale Main Street station Thursday night after Lansdale police, SEPTA Transit police and the Montgomery County Bomb Squad determined that it was suspcious in nature.

Sergeant Michael Trail of the Lansdale police said authorities received a 911 call about a suspicious item on the outbound commuter train from Philadelphia at about 8 p.m.

Lansdale police inspected the item, later identified as a suitcase, on the train, and "found that it was suspicious," Trail said. SEPTA's Special Operations Response Team (SORT) and the Montgomery County Bomb Squad were then called to the scene.

The bomb squad removed the suitcase from the train and conducted a closer inspection that led to the decision to "render it safe with a device."

Following a warning claxon, a loud detonation was heard in the area of the train station at about 9:50 p.m.

"There was no threat found" in the remains of the suitcase following the detonation, Trail said, "just normal items people carry in their suitcase."

Trail explained that some of the items seen during the bomb squad's X-ray examination appeared suspicious.

Trail said police were still investigating who the suitcase belonged to.

Earlier story and updates below.

Update 10:41 p.m.: Assistant Regional Editor David Powell reports from the scene that the suspicious package has been removed. He said that Lansdale police arrived at 8 p.m. in response to a call about a suspicious package. The police teams, along with the Montgomery County Bomb Squad, inspected the item, which appeared to be a briefcase.

After an inspection and X-ray, the squad decided to destroy the case, said Lansdale Sgt. Michael Trail, who was also on scene. Local authorities said they blew the case up around 9:51 p.m., as previously reported on Patch.

Police at the scene reported that there was nothing suspicious found inside the case after the inspection. There were "personal items" according to one officer at the scene.

The police will continue to investigate who the case belongs to, as the contents are still unknown to reporters at this time. We will continue to update you about this breaking news as information is released.

Update 9:51 p.m.: A warning signal and loud detonation was heard at the scene. Reports are the package has been destroyed, according to local sources. More news will come from our reporter at the scene.

A suspicious package has been reported at the Lansdale Train Station. At the current moment, roads are blocked from Main to Fifth in the area of the station.

The reported package is located along the tracks between the rails and the building. . and are on the scene, along with the Montgomery County Bomb Squad.

The suspicious package was apparently left behind, and the squad is currently suiting up to inspect.

This is the third package reported this summer, including one , and one .

Stay tuned to Lansdale Patch for more on this developing news. A reporter is headed to the scene.