The Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office was notified earlier today by the owner of Ark Storage Facility located on Hixson Pike regarding a suspicious tractor trailer left on their property. The driver left the vehicle at the Ark Storage facility during the day on Monday, March 22, 2010. Due to his behavior at that time and an area on the trailer that appeared abnormal, law enforcement was called today at approximately 11:30 a.m..

Because of the possibility of harm to the public after a K-9 explosive dog alerted on the truck, a decision was made to shut down traffic around the business and to evacuate homeowners living close to the storage facility. Numerous emergency services agencies were notified and responded to the scene and these include; Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI), Alcohol,Tobacco and Firearm (ATF), Hamilton County Emergency Services, Chattanooga Police Bomb personnel as well as K-9, Chattanooga Fire Department, Dallas Bay Volunteer Fire Department and Hamilton County Park Rangers.

The Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) did enter the truck and no explosive material was found. As there was no eminent threat to the surrounding community and at this point no crime committed, authorities on the scene opened roadways to traffic and allowed homeowners to return to their homes.

No further information will be released at this time regarding the tractor trailer as the investigation is on-going and being handled by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.