The Time Warner Center near Columbus Circle was evacuated Wednesday morning after a suspicious package was mailed to CNN, one of the building occupants.
In response to the package, which police said appeared to contain live explosive device and an envelope filled with white powder, officials stationed police officers across the city as a safety precaution.
“NYPD is currently deploying resources around the city out of an abundance of caution,” New York City Police Commissioner James O’Neill said in a press conference midday Wednesday.
Mayor Bill de Blasio reiterated that there were no credible, specific threats against other locations in New York City, but that police would have a “visible” presence at media locations, in subways, on the streets and at other “key locations” across the city.
There appeared to be a normal police presence outside Broadway theaters Wednesday afternoon into the early evening.
Asked for comment on the situation, the Broadway League said the theaters have “extensive security procedures” in place and that those are enacted when necessary.
“In all emergencies impacting security, we closely coordinate our efforts with the NYC Police Department and the Security personnel of the Times Square Alliance. Individual theatre responses are activated as necessary based upon the direction given by the NYC police and the specifics of the situation,” a spokesperson for the League said in an email to Broadway News.
The Shubert Organization, Nederlander Organization and the NYPD did not respond to a request for comment in time for publication.
On Wednesday, the FBI intercepted suspicious packages addressed to Hillary Clinton, at her Westchester address, and to former President Barack Obama in Washington. A package had also been sent to the Florida office of U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz and, on Tuesday, to the home of political activist George Soros, according to news reports.
The Time Warner Center was reopened late afternoon Wednesday.
