Briefcase Prompts Evacuations In Oceanside Industrial Park

OCEANSIDE, CA — The discovery Thursday of an unidentified metal briefcase underneath a parked van at an Oceanside employment services company prompted about three dozen workers to evacuate until a bomb squad determined that the abandoned valise contained harmless electronics.

The presence of the suspicious object outside Job Options Inc., 4015 Avenida de la Plata, was reported about 11 a.m., according to police.

A sheriff's ordnance-handling team was called in to investigate, and officers advised employees in the labor-recruitment business and an adjacent building to leave their posts and retreat a safe distance in case the container held something explosive or otherwise hazardous, Lt. Kedrick Sadler said.

About 2 p.m., the bomb squad blew open the briefcase, determining that it had contained some sort of automotive diagnostic kit, Sadler said.

The evacuated employees then were cleared to return to their workplaces at the industrial park north of Oceanside Boulevard, the lieutenant said.

– City News Service