AUBURN — Here we go again.

A pair of Auburn businesses were briefly evacuated Friday as bomb scares rattled nerves that were already jangled from recent events in Boston.

Early in the afternoon, a caller reported seeing a suspicious suitcase in the parking lot at The Home Depot on Mount Auburn Avenue.

Police and fire crews responded and the building was evacuated, but not for long. As it turned out, the case was left there by a shopper who had been clearing things out of his car to make room for the goods he had purchased.

The situation at The Home Depot resolved itself quickly — but meanwhile, across Mount Auburn Avenue at about 2 p.m., Walmart managers reported they had received a threat that indicated there was a bomb in the store.

Again, the building was cleared and police and fire crews were sent over, said Deputy Chief Jason Moen of the Auburn Police Department. The store was searched and nothing was found. Business went on as usual.

It was a rough afternoon to be out in Auburn’s shopping district.

Morgan Sewell said she was out and about, filling out job applications at Walmart and nearby businesses. When she arrived at Walmart, she saw customers and employees streaming out of the building.

Sewell left Walmart and went over to nearby Petco. While there, she was told that The Home Depot was being evacuated for a similar reason.

“Needless to say,” Sewell said, “I got out of the whole area.”

Moen, who was around in 2001 when “white powdery substances” kept the community on edge, understands the sense of fear. Since the beginning of the week, the news has been filled with nonstop reports of what’s going on in Boston in the aftermath of the marathon bombings.

“Everyone has a heightened sense of awareness right now,” the chief said. “We do want people to report these things. I think everything will settle down after they catch the other suspect in Boston.”