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Bomb threat snarls traffic at Pendleton

OCEANSIDE, Calif. — Shoppers and others heading home after work at Camp Pendleton’s “Mainside” headquarters area Wednesday night got caught in heavy traffic when military police locked down the busy area because of a bomb threat.

The reactions to the purported 4 p.m. bomb threat was prompted by an anonymous tip. Base officials hadn’t identified the source of the threat as of midday Thursday.

“Thorough searches by Explosive Ordnance Disposal and K-9 units turned up nothing,” officials said in a statement Thursday. The incident remained under investigation.

During the lockdown, police blocked off roads and parking areas and cleared several buildings near the Smile Care dental services building, which sits next to the base theater on Vandergrift Boulevard. The buildings sit in the heart of Mainside, across the street from a shopping center that includes a Marine Corps exchange.

The area was re-opened about 7 p.m., base officials said.