SALISBURY, N.C. — A suspicious package found at the Walmart in Salisbury Wednesday morning was detonated out of "an abundance of caution," police confirmed.
The Salisbury Fire Department and other first responders, including the Salisbury Police Department, were called to the Walmart on South Arlington Street for a suspicious item found at the store. Officers at the scene said Walmart employees called police after finding the suspicious item near the garden center.
The device was disabled shortly after 9 a.m., investigators told WCNC Charlotte's Richard DeVayne. Salisbury Police Chief Jerry Stokes said the item "had the appearance" of a pipe bomb but investigators determined it was not an explosive device. The bomb squad detonated the device "out of an abundance of caution."
Deborah Adkins said she was coming to work at the store when it was blocked off by police. She said she wasn't notified of the suspicious package by management before arriving at work.
"Definitely scary," she said. "You've got your back turned, you're working, you don't know what's going on and the place could go up, you know? It's really scary."
The Salisbury Walmart remains closed to customers and all employees were evacuated by store management prior to police arriving. The Cabarrus County Bomb Squad was called to the scene to assist with the investigation, according to Salisbury police.
Officials are asking everyone to avoid the area until further notice.
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