Santa Monica Pier Reopened After Hourslong Bomb Threat Investigation

The Santa Monica Pier has been reopened after reports of a bomb threat prompted an evacuation and an hourslong investigation Monday afternoon.

Culver City and Hawthorne police departments received calls at around 12:30 p.m. reporting a potential bomb threat at the pier, said Lt. Saul Rodriguez of the Santa Monica Police Department.

The entire pier was evacuated after officers and K-9 units with the Santa Monica and Beverly Hills police departments discovered a vehicle that was "suspicious in nature" in a parking lot at the southeast deck of the pier, Rodriguez said.

Police advised beachgoers to stay away from the pier and the area of Ocean Avenue as they continued the investigation, which continued as of 5 p.m.

After 6:30 p.m., a Los Angeles County Sheriff's bomb squad deemed the vehicle safe.

The vehicle was a rental car that belonged to a couple on vacation. Police apologized to the pair for the inconvenience.

Authorities did not elaborate why they considered the vehicle to be suspicious.