At 8:48 a.m. this morning Dallas Fox-affiliate KDFW went into breaking news mode after a suspicious package had been found near Cowboys Stadium, the site of next weekend’s Super Bowl.
Saul Garza reported live via phone from outside of the stadium, describing a scene in which firefighters and a police bomb squad had surrounded a manhole that contained suspicious looking materials.
The station went to “Live! with Regis and Kelly” at 9:00 a.m. but then cut in with breaking news coverage a few minutes later with a live helicopter shot of the bomb squad at work. Anchor Tim Ryan described the scene but was careful not to overhype the situation, saying that local authorities are displaying extra caution in the lead-up to the Super Bowl.
Garza again reported live via phone, providing an update on the bomb squad’s efforts. Ryan also spoke with aerial photographer Mike Warner who reported on individual details, including the equipment being used by the bomb squad, while highlighting them with his camera.
Around 9:40 a.m., KDFW returned to live coverage of the bomb squad and Garza reported that authorities had executed what he assumed to be a detonation procedure. The police department would not allow KDFW to film the procedure, though.
At 10:00 a.m. KDFW returned with a live aerial shot and Ryan updated viewers, saying that it was a false alarm:
We had a bomb scare out there early this morning. Somebody saw an individual tossing something into a storm sewer … causing quite a scare. Bomb squad came out wearing heavy protective gear, peering down into there. They retrieved what we’re told much to our relief, and I’m sure to theirs as well, was just some trash somebody tossed into the storm sewer. So, happy to report that was much ado about something and the all-clear we’re getting from Arlington.