Service on the Metro Blue Line was halted late Wednesday evening due to reports of a man acting supsiciously at the Willow Street Station.

The halt in service was originally reported as a bomb scare by wire services but was later confirmed by the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department (LASD) to have been connected to the man’s behavior and not to a conversation about a bomb being overheard.

The unidentified man allegedly entered a car in the Willow Street Station and as a precautionary measure the decision was made to shut down service to the Blue Line and the surrounding blocks while the area was cleared. The man had vacated the area and the car has been cleared, a Sheriff’s department spokesperson said. At the time of writing, service to the Blue Line is expected to be restored shortly.  

Service was suspended between Wardlow Road and Pacific Coast Highway and Long Beach Boulevard was shut down between Spring and Willow Streets as the investigation was conducted by the LASD. 

A Long Beach Police Department spokesperson said the LBPD was assisting the LASD with traffic control due to the investigation but the Sheriff’s Department was the lead agency on the case.