At 9:19 a.m. on Saturday, a Lancaster City Police K-9 and Lancaster County Sheriff Deputy K-9 alerted their handlers to a suspicious package inside the Lancaster Public Library during a preplanned sweep. The Pennsylvania State Police bomb squad was immediately notified. The 100 block of N. Queen St. was closed and the businesses surrounding the library were notified. After an extensive investigation, the Pennsylvania State Police bomb squad cleared the scene.  There are a number of reasons why the dogs could have alerted on it, but we cannot speculate on the cause as we do not have confirmation. We can confirm that the contents of the package were benign.  

Subsequently, we received additional bomb threats via email of explosive devices planted in the areas of the 100 block of N. Lime and 100 block of N. Queen in Lancaster City as well as outside of our jurisdiction. An evacuation notice was immediately ordered, and the Lancaster City police took steps to secure the areas. 

When it was deemed safe, K-9s were sent to the affected areas to clear the scenes. We can confirm that no explosive devices were found. The areas are now reopened, and there is no danger to the public at this time. 

“Not only do bomb threats disrupt the peace and safety of our community, they waste valuable public resources. These threats trigger costly responses and stretch our resources thin, leaving our community vulnerable to genuine emergencies. Bomb threats will not be tolerated, and we are committed to identifying and prosecuting those responsible,” said Chief Richard Mendez.  

The Lancaster City Bureau of Police takes all potential threats seriously and responds with the utmost caution. While the threats have proven to be unfounded, we will exhaust all efforts to investigate who sent them. Anyone with any information should call the Lancaster City Police at 717-735-3300.