Hospital patients at Saddleback Medical Center in Laguna Hills were moved to the parking lot for a brief period on Sunday afternoon, after a bomb threat officials say turned out to be a false alarm.
The Orange County Sheriff's Department announced on Twitter on Sunday afternoon that someone said they had a bomb at the hospital, just before 4 o'clock.
"Deputies are at Saddleback Hospital reference a subject who claimed to be at the location with a bomb," the Twitter statement from OCSD Laguna Hills division reads.
"Deputies have established a perimeter and are working with security. A command post with OCFA has been established. Please avoid the area."
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Roughly 15 minutes later, OCSD added in a second tweet that they were investigating to see if the incident was a possible swatting call.
Swatting is the act of calling emergency services with a fake threat or emergency to bring large numbers of armed officers to a particular location.
Deputies searched, and cleared the area after about an hour, saying nothing suspicious was seen.
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"Investigators have confirmed the reported bomb threat at Saddleback Hospital was false," OCSD announced on Twitter just after 5 p.m.
No information about arrests has yet been made available.
