Just before 6:30 p.m. Gordonsville Police Officer, Dusten Holder was the first to respond to a call at the Gordonsville McDonalds regarding a bomb threat. Two calls were received on the restaurant’s land line just a couple minutes apart. An employee described the calls as having a computerized voice indicating that a bomb was present and further instructions would be pending.
McDonald’s employees acted on the call and immediately evacuated the restaurant. Additional support came from South Carthage Police Department, Carthage Police Department and the Smith County Sheriffs Department. Together they worked to evacuate all people from surrounding businesses including the Quality Inn, Exxon Gas Station, Subway, Gordonsville Market and gas station. Gordonsville Highway (Hwy 53) was also shut down for a couple hours until the threat was assessed and the area determined to be safe. The Gordonsville Fire Department was dispatched to I-40 on standby for potential need to shut down the interstate.
The Tennessee Highway Patrol bomb and arson were unable to assist with the incident. However, the Lebanon Police Department sent a Bomb and Arson team with a canine to investigate the scene. Upon searching the property and building the canine did not detect the presence of a bomb and the area was deemed safe to return.
The incoming calls were from two different numbers just two minutes apart. The first number came from Salt Lake City, Utah and the second number was from New York, New York. McDonalds employees were unable to review the previous phone number in their call history, but Lt. Scott Hale was able to work with DTC Communications to obtain the incoming phone numbers.
The incident is still under investigation.
