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Replica grenade closes international bridge (4 photos)

20-30 people were evacuated from vehicles waiting in line to enter Canada. The incident lasted just over an hour

An ‘inert replica grenade’ was the reason the International Bridge was closed for just over an hour on Sunday.

That afternoon, border guards ordered a man driving a car to pull to the side for a routine secondary vehicle inspection, said Chris Kealey, Canadian Border Services Agency media relations.

While a detector dog handler was conducting a pre-inspection of the vehicle, an object that looked like a grenade was discovered in the back-seat area, he said.

Kealey said at that point — 2:20 p.m. — the bridge was closed off and all the cars waiting to enter Canada were evacuated. About 20-30 people were brought to a secure location which was not disclosed for security reasons.

Sault Ste. Marie Police Service attended the scene and took control of the perimeter, blocking off a section of Huron St., while Sault Ste. Marie Fire Services also attended, said Kealey.

The Sault Ste. Marie Police Service Explosives Disposal Unit inspected the object and soon determined that it was “not a real device and not in danger of exploding,” he said.

The bridge was reopened around 3:30 p.m. said Kealey.

Kealey said because no charges were laid, some information about the incident could not be released for privacy reasons.

“A real grenade would be a prohibited item, it’s not a real grenade so there is no enforcement,” said Kealey.

The man — a U.S. citizen — was at no point put under arrest, said Kealey, who added that the man returned to the United States but could not say if he was permitted entry into Canada.

“We do exercises and plan for emergency events like this. The staff did what they were trained for and exercised to do and made sure that their employees and the public were not in any immediate danger,” he said.


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Jeff Klassen

About the Author: Jeff Klassen

Jeff Klassen is a SooToday staff reporter who is always looking for an interesting story
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