BAKERSFIELD, Calif. — Police evacuated downtown Bakersfield and locked down several city government buildings on Tuesday after a man with a bomb strapped to his body barricaded himself inside a JPMorgan Chase bank branch, authorities said.
The Bakersfield Police Department responded to a bomb threat at about 1 p.m. at a bank in the city’s downtown, Sgt. Eric Celedon told 23ABC, a local ABC affiliate. Celedon declined to characterize the incident as a hostage situation.
“I’m not using the H word,” Celedon said. “However, there is an unidentified male subject in there with an unknown number of our community members and they’re refusing to come out at this point.”
The city issued evacuation orders for the affected area, according to Fox 11 Los Angeles.
“Please stay out of the downtown area,” the Bakersfield police wrote on social media. “Road closures are in effect and will remain in effect until further notice.”
Several city buildings were placed on lockdown, including City Hall North, City Hall South, the Development Services Building, and Bakersfield police headquarters, according to media reports.
A JPMorgan Chase spokesperson, Peter Kelley, said the bank was working with law enforcement and that its “focus is on the safety of everyone involved.” He provided no other details.
About a dozen police cars were on scene along with one tactical vehicle and multiple emergency responders, according to media reports.
Bakersfield, a city of about 380,000 residents, is the county seat of largely rural Kern County and is about 100 miles northeast of Los Angeles.