Thousands Evacuated Amid Bomb Scare

Dozens of blocks in and around Hollywood were turned into a rain-slick ghost town Saturday after a man in a truck threatened to blow up 5,000 pounds of explosives near Paramount Studios, forcing thousands to evacuate their homes and businesses and a local television station to broadcast out of borrowed offices.

Unsure what, if anything, had been placed in the white truck, authorities kept the evacuation order in place for hours after the man surrendered at 2:15 p.m.

“We are going to play it safe,” Los Angeles Police Lt. Tim McBride told reporters.

Later, Police Chief Willie L. Williams told evacuees at Hollywood High School that the bomb threat “appeared to be a hoax. . . . [But] after Oklahoma you don’t take chances.”

The incident began about 10 a.m., when the unidentified suspect--dressed in a plaid shirt and jeans--pulled up in front of the offices of KCAL-TV Channel 9. Witnesses said he put police tape around the truck and, when asked if something was the matter, announced that he had a bomb.

“The person was so calm,” said restaurant owner Peter Sargologos, who walked past the scene and heard the exchange.

A banner the man unfurled on the side of the truck proclaimed, “Don’t shoot. 5,000 lbs. of dynamite” and accused AAA of damaging his business. There was no explanation of his grievance.

Police soon arrived and spent the next four hours negotiating with him.

The perimeter of the evacuation area expanded steadily as the day wore on. By 4 p.m. it extended from Sunset to Beverly boulevards and from Western to Cole avenues.

Police drove through neighborhoods, broadcasting the evacuation orders on bullhorns.

Emergency shelters were opened at Fairfax and Hollywood high schools and buses were brought in to transport evacuees. For several hours, Hollywood Freeway offramps were closed between downtown and the Cahuenga Pass, creating gridlock amid a heavy downpour.

While the bomb threat caused massive disruption on a soggy afternoon, those driven from their homes and businesses seemed unfazed.

Larchmont resident Janis Dinwiddie was hanging out at the neighborhood wine shop, her cat and bird safely resting in their respective cages in the back seat of her car. Her husband had continued with their Saturday plans and taken their two young sons to a Westside library for the afternoon.

Larchmont Village shops, just south of the evacuation area, were doing a brisk business.

“Everyone’s in good spirits and taking it in stride,” Dinwiddie said. “It’s all you can do.”

Police said the evacuation was mandatory and that about 250 residents had sought shelter in the Hollywood High gym by early evening. Williams chatted with the evacuees and Red Cross volunteers, reassuring them that they would be home as soon as police confirmed there was no bomb.

But not everyone took the evacuation orders seriously. Some never left home and others returned, convinced they were too far from the truck to be in danger.

Madale Watson, 85, said she had lived in her North Irving Boulevard house too long--56 years--to worry. She heeded the orders to leave long enough to have lunch with a neighbor, but then went home, concerned that she had left her cat, Abby 2, in the house.

“Lord, that’s not very intelligent to walk off and leave that animal,” she said, scolding herself. She had gotten the cat carrier out, so that if she had to leave again, Abby would go with her.

At KCAL, the day was one of scrambling to stay on the air without a studio.

The staff succeeded with the help of a technician on Mt. Wilson, program tapes grabbed by fleeing employees and borrowed production space.

“We just knew we had to keep KCAL on the air,” said Don Corsini, vice president of sports operations and production.

Times staff writers Greg Braxton, K. Connie Kang and Doug Shuit contributed to this story.