Hundreds of workers were evacuated Tuesday from a downtown federal building that houses Internal Revenue Service offices after a shipment of decorative crystal eggs was mistaken for a possible hand grenade.
Atlanta police Officer Otis Redmond says workers X-raying packages in the mail room of the Peachtree Summit Federal Building found the suspicious package Tuesday. NBC News quoted a fire official saying that the package appeared to contain a hand grenade, but the contents later proved to be crystal eggs.
Approximately 2,000 people were evacuated from the 31-story building but were allowed to back inside. Authorities closed some surrounding streets.
The building houses offices for the IRS, U.S. Social Security Administration and other federal agencies. It is routine to X-ray packages that come into the mailroom.