Statue of Liberty evacuated after sensor indicates smoke

The Statue of Liberty was evacuated as a precaution Wednesday after a sensor in an elevator shaft falsely indicated smoke, park officials said.

National Park Service spokeswoman Mindi Rambo says there was never any smoke despite what the sensor indicated.

But just in case, several hundred people walked out of the statue around 1:50 p.m. Some came down the equivalent of about 15 flights of stairs.

While they waited, the visitors were able to stroll around the island or talk to a ranger about its history.

- AP