A bomb threat closed the Weis Markets store in Gap Monday morning, and state police are investigating whether the case is related to a rash of bomb threats around the country.

Fourteen police cars from the Lancaster and Ephrata state police barracks and Quarryville and Christiana boroughs responded to the incident about 10:15 a.m. at the shopping complex near the intersection of Routes 41 and 897 in Gap.

State police Trooper Philip Strosser said the incident is still under investigation and no suspect has been apprehended. He said numerous police departments around the country have had to handle bomb threats at grocery stores and other retailers in the last few weeks.

"It seems to be an isolated trend," Strosser said.

State police Cpl. Leo Hegarty said store managers received what he referred to as "a third-party telephone call" at 10:15 a.m., in which the caller stated there was a bomb in the store.

The caller instructed managers to remove money from the store safe, put it in several different locations and get customers out, Hegarty said.

Managers used the store's public address system to evacuate customers and 20 employees working at the time.

Employees and customers picking up groceries, prescriptions and last-minute Labor Day picnic supplies left their carts in the aisles and were evacuated by store managers and police.

No bomb was found in the store and no money was stolen, Hegarty said.

"We responded, made sure the scene was secure and searched the store," he said. "We're pretty sure no money was taken. There is no reason to believe there ever was a bomb in the store."

Police interviewed employees, customers and passersby at the store Monday afternoon.

There are 10 other stores in the Weis Market shopping center. Some stores were already closed for the Labor Day holiday, but several remained open as police cars circled the parking area in front of Weis.

"Our units were arriving and employees and customers were leaving the store as we locked down the store and secured the scene," Hegarty said.

Store managers and the shopping center property manager, who also arrived at the scene, would not answer questions about the incident. Weis managers also instructed employees not to answer questions while the incident was being investigated.

"We're closed — that's all we can say," an employee said to a customer who was turned away in the parking lot. "Check the news. They know more than we do."

Store employees were called back into Weis at 12:30 p.m. and a police officer remained outside the closed store to turn customers away. The store reopened later in the afternoon.

Among the disappointed customers was Jay Moore of Downingtown, who was camping at Spring Gulch Campground in the Welsh Mountains.

"I have a bad cold and I figured I'd come down and get something for it," he said. "I'm going to have to go to the doctor or something."

The bomb threat at Weis was not the only suspicious phone call Monday in Lancaster County. Officer Matt Neidinger of the West Lampeter Township Police reported a suspicious phone call made in the township, but no further details were available.

The Philadelphia Police Department also investigated a bomb threat to the Holiday Supermarket in the Fox Chase section of Philadelphia Monday morning.

Managers at the store received a call from someone threatening to blow up the store unless money was wired into an account, and the store was evacuated.

FBI Special Agent Jerri Williams of the Philadelphia office said eastern Pennsylvania had not seen any cases of bomb threats at grocery stores until this weekend. She said she doesn't know if they are copycat crimes or the same perpetrator.

Williams said the FBI will work with the local police departments to investigate the calls.

"We're going to definitely look into these cases to see if there is any validity in them," Williams said. "We're also trying to figure out who's making these calls."

E-mail: myoder@lnpnews.com