Eiffel Tower Bomb Alert: Paris Landmark Evacuated For Two Hours
The Eiffel Tower was evacuated this afternoon after a bomb alert.
The French landmark reopened two hours later when officials found out the alert was just a scare, Reuters reported Aug. 9.
France is on high alert ever since the U.S. State Department issued a global travel warning to U.S. citizens last week, closing several embassies. The reasoning for closing the embassies was for security reasons, but it was unspecified what exactly the concerns were about security.
A bomb disposal unit was sent into the tower to inspect after an anonymous phone call triggered the alert around 2 p.m, Reuters reported police said. The team found nothing suspicious. Tourists and visitors at the landmark reportedly had to take lifts and then about 700 steps to reach the ground.
Bomb scares happen regularly at the Eiffel Tower, but the threats only cause evacuations a few of times a year.
In March 2013 visitors were evacuated from the Eiffel Tower after someone called anonymously and announced the Tower was under attack, The Independent reported today.
About 1,400 people were removed and a security perimeter was set up around the monument. Security guards were also ordered to leave, which at the time was described as odd, The Independent reported.
The Perisan landmark has about 7 million visitors each year and is one of the world's most recognisable monuments. In the peak of summer the Eiffel Tower, built in 1889, sees around 30,000 every day.
