The city of Springfield, Ohio, has closed its city hall due to a bomb threat against several establishments.

Springfield has been the focus of national attention in recent days after Donald Trump’s campaign and right-wing Republicans spread a false rumor on social media that Haitian immigrants in the community were eating local pets. There is no evidence to support these claims.

In a Facebook post Thursday, city officials said they were notified of the bomb threat via email at 8:24 a.m. The email was sent to “multiple agencies and media outlets.”

“As a precautionary measure, the building has been evacuated and authorities are currently conducting a thorough investigation. Our primary concern is the safety and well-being of our employees and residents. We are working to resolve this situation as quickly as possible,” city officials said.

They added: “We ask the public to avoid the area around City Hall during the ongoing investigation and to report any suspicious activity to the Springfield Police Department. We appreciate your patience and cooperation as we resolve this matter.”

Trump even referenced the conspiracy theory in Tuesday night’s debate with his opponent Kamala Harris. Trump repeated the inflammatory lie, saying, “In Springfield, they eat the dogs, the people who came here, they eat the cats… They eat the pets of the people who live there.” His actions sparked a wave of anger and ridicule.

That same day, JD Vance mentioned the rumor on X, which was also flooded with AI-generated images of Trump surrounded by dogs, cats and ducks, some of which appear to be armed and protecting him.

Meanwhile, Aiden Clark, the father of an 11-year-old boy who died last year when a minivan driven by a Haitian immigrant collided with his school bus, called on Trump and Vance to stop using his son’s name for “political purposes” during a Springfield City Commission forum on Tuesday.

“They can spew all the hate they want about illegal immigrants, the border crisis, and even false claims about furry pets being trashed and eaten by community members. However, they are not allowed, and have never been allowed, to mention Aiden Clark of Springfield, Ohio,” Clark said.