WOODLAWN — Part of Tuesday’s investigation into a suspicious device took place in Woodlawn and centered around the Rodeway Inn on Whitehead Court.
One guest staying at the Red Roof Inn on Whitehead said she was asleep in bed when she woke to a bang on her door. Outside was a Baltimore County Police officer who said she need to evacuate due to a bomb threat.
“I sat down outside the hotel and then he said, ‘No, you gotta go further,’ and I’m like, ‘look at me’ and he said, ‘No, you gotta go all the way down to Woodlawn,” she said.
Authorities shut down shopping malls on Security Boulevard and evacuated all of the businesses from the 695 Beltway to the Social Security Building.
“If all the stores are closed down, then you know it’s something major,” said Wayne, who lives in the area.
Officers diverted traffic away from the area too.
“I got turned all around,” said Evelyn who was trying to get to her grandson’s school and police detoured her miles away. “I didn’t know which way to go, I didn’t know what was going on, so I had to pull over and ask a police officer how to get to my grandson.”
Students from nearby Woodlawn High School were unable to walk or catch the bus home.
For hotel guests staying off Whitehead Road, Tuesday was spent outside with little to no access to food or water.
“We’re literally just waiting to get inside the hotel,” said Unika Boston, a guest at the Rodeway Inn.
Chopper 13 captured images of authorities closing in on the Rodeway Inn. Images show a robot, the bomb squad and the ATF pulling things out of this room.
But Boston, with her two children, said she just wanted to get her groceries out of the hot sun and her children to bed after a long day.
“Hopefully we will be able to get in soon so we will be able to get situated for the night,” Boston said.
Guests were finally allowed back into their hotels on this street just after 6 p.m. Police are not saying what—if anything—they found at the Rodeway Inn, but say it’s all part of their active investigation.