A bomb scare led to the urgent evacuation of a boxing match in Spring Hill, with authorities sweeping the old Saturn Headquarters as alarmed spectators streamed out of the building. The incident unfolded yesterday around 6:10 p.m., when an individual reported having placed multiple pipe bombs within the premises, triggering a swift and sizable response from law enforcement.
"We had World Wide Stages security do a sweep for any unattended bags, and none were located at that time," said Michael Foster, a spokesperson for the Spring Hill Police Department, in a statement obtained by WSMV. Authorities managed to evacuate approximately 400 people from scene, highlighting the scale of the potential threat. However, no immediate danger was found as the "unattended bag" that later prompted an additional scare turned out to be harmless.
By 7:55 p.m., all attendees of the event had cleared the 350,000-square-foot building. Shortly thereafter, at 8:15 p.m., the bag in question was deemed safe by the Tennessee Highway Patrol Bomb Squad. Spectators were allowed reentry after an all-clear at 8:31 p.m., according to WKRN. The police indicated that they will pursue the origins of the bomb threat, which has features of a 'swatting' call—a severe form of harassment that misleads emergency services and has recently seen a worrying trend towards targeting public spaces.
This malicious swatting phenomenon is known to exploit technology for deceit, making emergency calls seem to originate from the intended victim's location. "It appears that this is a ‘swatting’ call," police said. "We will work with our state and federal law enforcement partners to determine the origin of the call," as reported by the Rutherford Source. The incident required aid from multiple agencies including the Spring Hill Police Department, Tennessee Highway Patrol, Columbia Police Department, and the Nashville International Airport Police, who provided resources crucial to managing the threat efficiently and safely.
