Altered Birdhouse to Blame for Sarasota Scare

The suspicious package that forced evacuations in Sarasota Wednesday morning has been identified by police as a highly modified birdhouse.

“There was a plastic jug attached, fuses coming out of the top and wires coming out of the bottom,” the agency wrote in an email to media just before noon.

The package was discovered by security personnel from Sarasota Memorial Hospital during a routine check on the campus around 8 a.m. Police were notified of the discovery, prompting evacuations of businesses in the immediate area, road closings and a relocation of patients from the hospital’s southeast corner. Patients were not allowed out of the hospital, nor were new ones admitted inside during the inspection of the device.

The all-clear came around 10:30 a.m. when the department’s Explosive Materials Unit, with the help of robots, determined the device was not a threat. Evacuation orders were lifted shortly thereafter.

The investigation into the case continues. It remains unclear who placed the package near the hospital.

Wednesday’s scare comes on the heels of the discovery of an inactive hand grenade on a bridge in the FishHawk area of Hillsborough County. Over the weekend, a visitor to St. Pete Beach found a live military ordinance on the surf line.

Photos courtesy of the Sarasota Police Department