FAIRHOPE, Ala. — On Sunday, about 11:26 a.m., the Fairhope Police Department received a phone call about a suspicious device that had been located on Summit Street behind a nursing home facility.

According to the caller, there was a cautionary sign attached to the device, advising police and fire departments be called. Officers of the Fairhope Police Department and firefighters of the Fairhope Volunteer Fire Department responded.

Because the item was not easily identified, an evacuation was started as a precautionary measure. Firefighters and police officers assisted the nursing home staff; residents were moved to a nearby church.

Officers and firefighters also established a secure perimeter for several blocks around the scene. Members of the Alabama Department of Public Safety Explosive Ordinance Disposal Unit (E.O.D.) and members of the Mobile Police Department E.O.D. Unit came to assist, as did agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.

Trained personnel who subsequently examined the item determined it to be a weather balloon. The warning card is a standard measure used to inform anyone, who comes across such a downed balloon, that the gasses used to inflate the balloon could be explosive if improperly handled.

By 2:22 p.m., the E.O.D. units had safely removed the device, and all of the nursing home residents had been returned to that facility.