Curious how police located and safely disposed of several homemade bombs found at a home on Tedman Street on the weekend? So was Sudbury.com. So we asked Greater Sudbury Police to explain how it was done.
First, crowd control. Barricades were set up and the public was asked to avoid the area where Greater Sudbury Police Services (GSPS) executed a search warrant and conducted an investigation.
That search warrant lead to the discovery of four homemade explosive devices, located with help of an explosives robot. Outfitted with several cameras and capable of climbing stairs, the robot can deliver explosive disruptors for the safe disposal of explosive materials.
The robot was operated by an Explosive Technician wearing an Explosive Ordnance Disposal suit (bomb suit). The suit weighs nearly 100 lbs. It protects officers from heat, blasts and overpressure.
The devices the GSPS Tactical Unit found were homemade in nature and had the potential to cause serious injury or death if initiated in close proximity to people, police spokesperson Kaitlyn Dunn explained to Sudbury.com this week. And it's that homemade nature that proves most problematic.
"Homemade explosive devices are very unstable and unpredictable due to the unknown manufacturing process and materials," Dunn said.
Early Saturday morning, the explosives robot searched the exterior of the property on Tedman Avenue, while an explosives technician searched the interior wearing the bomb suit.
Once explosive devices are located, they are usually transported to a designated "render safe area" for disposal.
Again, due to the unpredictable nature of the bombs, Dunn explained the devices were not suitable for safe transport from the location and as a result were "rendered safe" on scene.
"The render-safe procedure consisted of explosives technicians utilizing police explosives to counter-charge the devices," Dunn said. "This was conducted in a very controlled manner and resulted in the safe disposal of all explosive devices and prevented any injuries or property damage."
To dispose of the bombs, police had to blow them up. Using car tires and sand bags to help contain it, a controlled blast was used to dispose of the devices. No injuries occurred during the safe disposal procedure, and no damage was done to property, police said.
To be sure that no remaining explosives were present on the property, the Ontario Provincial Police Tactics and Rescue Unit completed a final search of the premises using a bomb-sniffing dog. None were found and the area was cleared.
Watch video of the GSPS safe disposal of explosive devices that occurred on Saturday morning above.
