WalMart hit with another bomb threat

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November 2, 2009

By CHRIS HARRIS, Staff Writer The Commonwealth Journal Mon Nov 02, 2009, 07:51 PM EST

Somerset — One of Pulaski County’s largest commercial hubs faced an unwelcome interruption in its business Monday after receiving a bomb threat.

At around 12:15 p.m., the threat was called in to the Walmart Supercenter on South U.S. 27, according to manager Allen Adcock. The building was promptly evacuated, with hundreds of customers and employees huddled outside in the expansive parking lot before being let back in about an hour and 10 minutes later.

“We have a code for our associates that they know immediately,” said Adcock. Walmart employees can then begin the process of getting people out of the store when there is a perceived threat to public safety, and an announcement is also made over the P.A. loudspeaker, advising people to exit.

No bomb was discovered, and no one was physically hurt, according to Det. Shannon Smith of the Somerset Police Department. However, that doesn’t mean the incident was entirely free of other kinds of harm.

“I don’t think people understand the impact it has on our community when any business closes — the financial impact and inconvenience on customers,” said Adcock. “We’ve got the flu virus going around and people are trying to get their medication in the pharmacy, and we’ve got the building closing down.”

This is the second time in the last year that there has been such a bomb threat at Walmart, said Adcock. That’s unusually high number of calls, prank or otherwise — Adcock says those are the first two he can remember in the seven years he’s been with the department store. Why the sudden rise in these calls? Adcock doesn’t know, but he wants to see it stop.

“We have to pull a law enforcement officer off the streets that should be busy doing other things,” said Adcock. “I wish people would understand that.”

Moreover, Adcock can’t treat it as just teenage foolishness — calling in a bomb threat is a felony, after all.

“I take it very seriously,” said Adcock. “One human life comes before any business.”

Smith said the incident is under investigation, and police are looking into every possible angle and method of tracking down those responsible.

“We will try to put every asset or technique to work to try to find who did this, and tell the results of investigation to a grand jury (so the perpetrator) can be prosecuted accordingly,” said Smith. “In essence, it’s just a bad set of circumstances. Whomever is responsible has lowered themselves to this level, when they have to put however many people in fear.”

It’s possible that this call could be connected to the other one earlier this year, said Smith, and that possibility will not be eliminated until investigators know whether or not it is correct. Smith also said that federal authorities will be contacted about this incident, as using a telephone to make a threat such as this is a federal violation.

Smith applauded the Walmart workers for making the on-site investigation a smooth one.

“We followed our protocol to assist store personnel in looking for anything that’s out of place, anything that doesn’t look right,” said Smith. “Obviously, the employees and management staff at Walmart know their building inside and out.”

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Pulaski carries Girdler to win

In the weeks leading up to Tuesday’s primary election, it was impossible to miss the colorful signs dotting nearly every Pulaski roadway. The names in the race for the 15th State Senatorial District seat popped out: A.C. Donahue. Chris Girdler. Mark Polston.

Once citizens hit the ballots, however, the results mirrored the dimensions of the signs themselves: Chris Girdler stood the tallest.

Girdler, deputy district director for Congressman Harold “Hal” Rogers, ran away with the votes inside Pulaski County’s borders, earning 3,926 votes for 62.05 percent of the total number cast.

That number more than doubled the next highest vote-getter, businessman Mark Polston, who raked in 1,624 votes for 25.67 percent.

However, Polston — who owns Classic Carpet, a home-flooring business located just off the southern 914 bypass — can claim a moral victory ... three of them, in fact. In all three counties in the district other than Pulaski — those being Adair, Casey, and Russell Counties — Polston actually edged out Girdler.

In Adair, Polston beat Girdler 629 to 394. In Casey County, it was 538 to 417, and in Russell, it was 1,862 to 1,038.

Polston said he just “couldn’t pull it out with the numbers” and that “the machine worked for” Girdler in Pulaski County.

“I think that was their strategy — I think they had a Pulaski County strategy all along,” said Polston. “They played the political game well.”

Polston said the difference between his and Girdler’s campaigns was that “mine was a very, very grass roots campaign,” he said. “I did not have a political machine behind me. I understand how this process works, and in this instance, he prevailed.”

As for why Girdler didn’t take three of four counties, the winning candidate — since there are no Democrats in the race, winning the Republican primary was effectively a final victory for Girdler — said he didn’t have an answer for that.

However, “I believe things happen for a reason and I hope the long and strenuous campaign will only heighten my desire to move beyond the bitterness and partisanship of the recent past,” said Girdler.

“Regionalism is a goal of mine, and I look forward to helping all four counties,” he added, noting that he campaigned heavily in each of them.

Sen. Vernie McGaha, the long-time state senator whose seat the candidates were vying for, actually supported Polston after Liberty’s Todd Hoskins dropped out of the race earlier this month.

Donahue, a local attorney, got 556 votes in Pulaski County, 8.79 percent of the vote. He only received 145 votes in Russell County, 74 in Adair County, and 75 in Casey County, where hometown candidate Hoskins almost matched him with 71 votes despite no longer being officially in the race.

Polston said he’s “still digesting” what happened, and though “the process has been a very good experience for me,” he wouldn’t commit to running again in the future. “I wouldn’t shut the door to anything, but I’m not opening any doors either.”

Still, “I think I got a lot of people involved in the process that had not been involved before and would not have been otherwise,” he said. “A lot of people got out and worked really hard, got motivated to talk to friends and neighbors. I think a lot of people became involved through this campaign that are going to be involved for a long time.”

Girdler stressed his “positive message” and said that Rogers is a “mentor and good friend” that he would turn to for advice in dealing with a frequently combative legislative body in Frankfort, one for which Girdler hopes to help change the culture.

Girdler said that he was “confident and optimistic” during the day Tuesday because he’d “worked extremely hard.” Nevertheless, the realization that he’d won gave him “chill bumps,” he said.

“I’m absolutely honored,” said Girdler. “The position of state senator is more than an honor, more than an office. It’s a charge to keep, and I will give it my all.

“I pledge to be the people’s state senator,” he added. “I look forward to working with everyone to move this region forward.”

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