Posted on 09/01/2006 9:43:36 AM PDT by Freedumb
A crude pipe bomb exploded this morning in a garbage can inside the Hinsdale Metra station lobby, but no one was injured and authorities said the incident was not a terrorist act.
Thomas Ahern, special agent with the U.S. Bureau of Tobacco, Alcohol and Firearms, said authorities had a “person of interest” in custody and were questioning him.
“It’s too early to know any motive,” he said, noting authorities were still interviewing the suspect, as well as train passengers. “It is what we could characterize as an improvised explosive device.”
Ahern said ATF officials worked with Hinsdale police, the FBI and the DuPage County Bomb Squad to comb other stations along the Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad.
No other devices were found.
“It really had very little if any impact on the morning commute,” Ahern said.
Metra spokesman Tom Miller said late this morning the Hinsdale station was open and trains were stopping there.
At 6:53 a.m., a Metra employee called police to report “someone just threw a firecracker” into a garbage can at the Hinsdale depot, police said.
Shortly after the call, the fire alarm activated, but there was no extensive damage, police said.
Hinsdale police said witnesses saw the suspect board the 6:56 a.m. or 7:04 a.m. train to Chicago.
“At this time, we do not have any reason to believe this was a terrorist act,” police said in a statement
Detonating a bomb in a train station is a terrorist act -- no matter who did it.
Was it connected to al qaeda? Probably not, but it is still terrorism.
Kinda sounds like a bored teenager on summer break with an M-80 in his pocket and a trash can handy... I know the media described it as a crude pipe bomb, but they call semi-automatics "machine guns" too, sometimes.
It's the pipe bomb planted inside the German Chocolate Cherry Cake that does it. That or Lutefisk packed with C2. I agree about the evil Southern Baptists, though. I think they felt we Lutherans were so involved in terrorism, they might as well join our agenda. Just kidding, folks!
Are you NUTS? In what, a helicopter?
Probably the wannabees from Naperville.
Really? Since when? It's a bit of a jaunt to Stoney Island.
Must be one of those darn atheists!
"Stay away from the cans!!"
I'm still chuckling. Any guesses as to how far a carload of NOI-types would make it into Hinsdale before being pulled over?
Lutefisk doesn't need C-2. It'll sponateously explode with little or no help at all................
It's not generally known but lutefisk will detonate if struck sharply. The story about its being edible is just to make it easy to move across state lines.
Maybe someone was practicing for an attack on the Oak Street Bridge.
Ahah! Thanks for the info. Being German Lutheran I was unaware of its volatility. I hold to my statement about the cake, though.
Yall are some bad brothers:')
Transcontinental freight trains could have been impacted. I used to live right near those tracks. Big equipment, covered by tarps, used to go by, late at night.
I don't find it very likely that transcontinental commerce would be affected by some guy tossing a bomb into a wastebasket, and then boarding a Metra train.
I love German Chocolate cake, hold the cherries!......
I'm sorry, but Baptists are not allowed in Hinsdale. There was a family of color at one point, but they moved when the teenaged son refused to play ball for the HTHS Red Devils...
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.