seal off

The first film, released in 2007, saw Homer accidentally pollute the water supply of Springfield and then attempt to save his city, which had been sealed off under a huge glass dome.

About 9 a.m., she said, phalanxes of masked agents in tactical vests sealed off the sprawling compound.

"Dealing with a suspected bomb in a playground is not exactly something they cover in the clerk's manual," she says with a wry smile, "but we sealed off the site straight away."

Reno police sealed off the area near the casino and urged people to stay away.

For 64 days, contestants were sealed off from the outside world and their every move filmed, with viewers voting out roughly one person each week until a winner was handed the £70,000 prize.