Law enforcement officers Friday were on “a heightened state of situational awareness” in the Los Angeles area in the wake of mass killings in Nice, France.
But the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department announced that there were “no specific or credible threats received by law enforcement for the greater Los Angeles area.”
Department personnel are maintaining “a heightened state of situational awareness,” according to a department statement that expressed solidarity with, and sympathy for, those directly and indirectly affected by the attack Thursday night.
In that attack that killed at least 84 people a driver steered a truck into a crowd of many dozens of Bastille Day revelers who had gathered for a fireworks display and then opened fire. Others were injured, some of them seriously, according to news reports.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with the people of Nice, France as they work to deal with the challenging and troubling circumstances created by this horrific attack,” according to the sheriff’s department.
“Los Angeles County is made up of a unique and diverse population. It is home to people from all over the world, including France. We stand united with our French residents, locally and globally. We at the LA County Sheriff’s Department send compassion and prayers to those families who lost loved ones today.”
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti issued a tweet expressing similar sentiments.
“We mourn this senseless loss of life,” he wrote. “Angelenos stand with the people of France in this moment of pain and sorrow”
The sheriff’s department also sought to reassure area residents.
“The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department employs thousands of uniformed deputy sheriffs who are on-duty 24 hours a day, seven days a week, patrolling and protecting the many diverse and varying communities we serve …,” officials said.
French officials have said the attack appears to be the work of extremist Islamic terrorists.
–City News Service