Suspicious container prompts evacuations in North Philly

NORTH PHILADELPHIA (WTXF) - A scare in a North Philadelphia neighborhood forced evacuations on Sunday afternoon.

The bomb squad was called out when a suspicious container was spotted. Authorities cleared the area around 5:30 p.m., but were thankful that neighbors took initiative to call crews.

It happened near the 2000 block of West York Street around 4 p.m. A neighbor on the block noticed a smell of gas coming from a container, and an item that looks like a rocket on top of it.

After investigating, crews said the container wasn't dangerous.

They believe someone was cleaning out a nearby abandoned home, and used the 55 gallon drum to discard liquid from the home.