Authorities in the United States have launched an investigation involving the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) after a bomb was discovered at an ethanol production facility in Peoria, central Illinois, on Friday, triggering the evacuation of more than 5,000 residents and workers.
The explosive device was discovered at the BioUrja Renewables facility, an industrial complex in Peoria, a city with an estimated population of 110,000.
CNN reports that the discovery prompted an emergency response involving local, state and federal authorities, with officials establishing a one-mile blast radius and ordering the evacuation of thousands of people as a precaution against a possible explosion.
Peoria Mayor Rita Ali confirmed the seriousness of the situation during a briefing late Friday, saying authorities had established that the threat was genuine.
“We know it’s a credible threat. We know it’s a bomb,” Ali said, adding that investigators had yet to determine whether other explosive devices were present at the facility.
Peoria Police Chief, Brad Dixon, also dismissed the possibility that the incident was a hoax, explaining that although bomb threats are frequently reported across the United States, many eventually turn out to be false.
He said the discovery at the ethanol plant was different because officers had found an actual suspicious package that was assessed to constitute a credible threat.
“Bomb threats are not uncommon in the United States, but they usually turn out to be illegitimate. This is not the case here. We found a credible package there deemed to be a threat… We’re not considering this a hoax,” Dixon said during a news conference on Saturday morning.
According to authorities, the initial report was received by police shortly after 1pm Central Time on Friday.
Dixon subsequently disclosed that the explosive device had been rendered safe by the responding authorities.
However, the evacuation order remained in effect as emergency personnel continued searching the expansive industrial facility for possible additional devices and other evidence.
The FBI has joined the investigation, with Special Agent Ryan Pressley, from the bureau’s Springfield office, assuring residents that authorities would pursue those responsible.
“While it is early in the investigation, know this. We will work tirelessly to identify the individual responsible and bring them to justice,” Pressley said.
Authorities said no arrests had been made as of Saturday morning, while no injuries had been reported in connection with the incident.
Emergency responders and investigators spent several hours combing through the large industrial complex on Friday, with police warning that the search would be extensive because of the size of the facility.
“It’s a large facility. There’s going to be an exhaustive search on the facility. That has not been completed yet,” Dixon said.
Meanwhile, emergency shelters were established to accommodate residents and workers displaced by the evacuation.
The designated shelters included Manual Academy High School in Peoria and the EastSide Centre sports complex in neighbouring East Peoria.
Several emergency and government agencies have also been mobilised to support the operation, including the Peoria Fire Department, the Peoria County Sheriff’s Department and the Illinois Secretary of State.
The Peoria incident comes amid heightened counter-terrorism operations in the United States just as The Daily Crucible earlier reported, the FBI disrupted more than 1,300 terrorist threats and arrested thousands of people connected to foreign terrorist organizations in 21 the last months, underscoring the scale of threats facing the country.
