Montana Capitol briefly evacuated after bomb threat

A bomb threat led to a brief evacuation of the Montana Capitol building in Helena Wednesday morning, state officials said. 

The building reopened to the public at about 10 a.m., after law enforcement searched the building and found no evidence of a bomb, according to the Montana Department of Administration.

“In response to this morning’s bomb threat at the Montana State Capitol, Department of Administration General Services has been working closely with local law enforcement officials,” Megan Grotzke, a spokesperson for the department, told Montana Free Press Wednesday. ”A sweep has been completed, and the threat was found to not be credible. The building has been reopened to the public.”

Montana’s Capitol was one of several evacuated nationwide Wednesday following similar threats.

Jerry Howe, the executive director of the Montana Legislative Services Division, said a highway patrol trooper notified him of the threat at about 8:30 Wednesday morning and directed staff to evacuate the building. Montana Highway Patrol oversees security at the Capitol and other state buildings. 

“At first, we giggled and laughed, and he said, ‘We’re serious,’” Howe told MTFP. 

Jay Nelson, a spokesperson for the Montana Highway Patrol, confirmed the receipt of the threat and said an MHP explosive detection K9 team searched the building. He did not specify in what form — over the phone or email, for example — MHP received the threat. 

Legislative employees left the building, with some huddling in sub-freezing temperatures on the Capitol lawn and others waiting for news in the nearby offices of the Montana Department of Justice. Howe said he heard from the Department of Administration that staff was able to re-enter the building shortly before 10. 

It’s not the first threat made against the Capitol or its denizens in the last year. In June, multiple Republican lawmakers received envelopes with unidentified white powder, though officials later determined the material posed no danger. 

This story may be updated as more information becomes available.