More Info Released About Montclair Animal Shelter Bomb Threat

MONTCLAIR, NJ — Montclair officials have released information about a bomb scare at the municipal animal shelter last week.

Multiple emergency responders – including a bomb squad – were spotted outside the shelter’s 77 North Willow Street facility on Oct. 7, and Montclair Fire Department Deputy Chief Robert Duncan confirmed that authorities were searching the area for “potential threats,” TAP Into Montclair reported.

• See related article: Montclair Authorities Search For ‘Threat’ At Animal Shelter Building

Elizabeth Morgan, the shelter’s acting director, told NorthJersey.com that a man speaking in a gravelly voice called the facility around 2 p.m. that afternoon and said just five words before hanging up: “There is a bomb out front.”

Morgan said that she called 911, secured the animals in the shelter’s custody and escorted staff members into the reception area until police arrived.

Police reports state that first responders evacuated the shelter’s staff from the building and the Essex County Sheriff’s Bomb Squad examined the scene while Montclair police and fire units secured the area, NorthJersey.com reported.

Authorities declared the area safe and allowed people to renter the building later that afternoon, police reports stated.

Photo: Eric Kiefer

Send local news tips, photos and press releases to eric.kiefer@patch.com