LFR detonates suspicious item at Lincoln hazardous waste facility

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) — Lincoln Fire & Rescue investigated a suspicious item Wednesday afternoon at a hazardous waste center.

About noon, a worker at HazToGo near 48th and Superior streets opened a box that someone had dropped off for recycling.

Inside, the worker found what looked like a pipe bomb, so the center called LFR.

The bomb squad evacuated nearby buildings and shut down traffic to the hazardous waste center.

Capt. Tim Stohlman said the bomb squad decided to treat the pipe as if it was a bomb by detonating it remotely.

“We looked inside of it and verified that it needed to be rendered safe,” he said. “There was only one way of doing it, so we did it remotely. All bomb techs were safe, and no one was hurt.”

LFR eventually determined that the pipe was not a bomb.

It’s not yet known who dropped off the box.

The investigation has been turned over to the Lincoln Police Department.

A Lincoln man said he heard about the commotion when he was planning to recycle a microwave at the waste center.

“It was the first time I’ve ever been out here before,” Dustin Wilder said. “So I thought, ‘Of course, the first time I’m coming out here, there was a pipe bomb scare.'”

But Wilder said he feels confident in the bomb squad’s skills.

“Obviously, I know the police and everyone has it under control,” he said.