Mall shooting investigation leads to hours-long wait for San Bruno-based BART commuters

SAN BRUNO, Calif. (KGO) -- BART passengers couldn't get to the San Bruno BART Station for most of Tuesday afternoon, following a shooting at Tanforan Mall.

When San Bruno-based riders arrived, they had to wait hours before they were granted access into the BART garage.

RELATED: San Bruno police say 2 shot, 2 injured at Tanforan mall; search on for 2 possible suspects

Service at the San Bruno BART station was restored at 8:10 p.m.

Even after service resumed at the station, BART police and San Mateo County Sheriff's investigators remained on-scene. At one point, ABC7 News cameras captured investigators taking photos of specific BART entrance gates.

"I want to go home and I want to take my car with me," David Tan told ABC7 News. "I want to be able to drive back here tomorrow morning to be able to go to work."

Tan is a San Bruno resident, one of many who were forced to wait hours for access to his car. He said he was able to somehow get around officers and almost made it out of the garage when he was stopped.

"I said I got up the elevator, no one stopped me," he said, describing his interaction with officers. "They were surprised by it. They searched my car, they looked inside my trunk, they told me I can't leave right now. I had to go back and park my car."

RELATED: San Bruno mall shooting: Woman stuck on BART train describes police search at 12th St. Station

When ABC7 News arrived on-scene, heavy police presence was noticeable. Police canines were also on-scene.

BART passengers said the station's closure forced them to take a bus bridge from other stations.

The shooting aftermath and crowds heading home made for a chaotic afternoon commute.

RELATED: Employee describes turning off lights, hiding in stockroom during Tanforan shooting

"The platform at Embarcadero was really packed, and they prevented people from coming down to the platform," Thelma Tannis said. "In fact, some of them closed the gates."

BART tweeted it would not be issuing tickets to those who left their cars at the San Bruno BART station garage overnight.