Suspicious object reported at 33rd and Chestnut streets, near New College House

A suspicious object was spotted today at the southwest corner of 33rd and Chestnut streets. 

"At approximately 2:24 pm today, Penn Police responded to a report of a suspicious object on the southwest corner of 33rd & Chestnut Streets," Vice President for Public Safety Maureen Rush wrote in an emailed statement to The Daily Pennsylvanian. "Philadelphia Police Ordnance Disposal Unit responded to the scene and cleared the object, indicating that it was not a danger to the community."

By 3:30 p.m., a UPenn Alert was sent out indicating the all-clear in the area. The Division of Public Safety noted that the suspicious item did not consist of any harmful material. 

The Philadelphia Police Department shut down and then reopened the intersection of 33rd and Chestnut streets to incoming traffic during the investigation. 

Students who were in New College House, located at 3335 Woodland Walk, were asked to relocate to the southwest area of the building while police investigated the object. 

"They were knocking on doors and told us to evacuate to the first floor," said Daniel Wang, a College freshman and a contributing reporter for the DP who was in NCH at the time. Wang added that prior to being evacuated to the ground floor, he was warned to back away from the windows in case the suspicious object was an explosive device.

Within five minutes, however, Penn Police declared the area clear and let residents move freely through the dorm.

The incident comes amid a series of bomb scares around the country.

Pipe bombs were sent to several prominent Democrat politicians this past week, including former President Barack Obama and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. On Thursday, authorities found two packages containing potentially explosive devices intended for former Vice President and Penn professor Joe Biden, CNN reported. 

This is a breaking story that was last updated at 4:43 p.m. Check back here for updates.