A bomb with a one-mile blast radius was discovered Friday at an ethanol plant in Peoria, Illinois, prompting an extensive investigation.
Residents within a mile of the facility, BioUrja Renewables, were asked to evacuate and shelters were set up at a local high school, Peoria Police Chief Brad Dixon said at a news conference Saturday morning.
The facility notified police of a bomb threat Friday at 1:08 p.m., Dixon said. By around 2 p.m., police had located the suspicious package and, almost five hours later, identified it as a credible bomb. Around 7 p.m., evacuation orders were sent to nearby residents.
Bomb technicians “made the package safe” at 9:12 p.m.
At the time of the press conference, shortly after midnight, law enforcement officers were still searching the premises extensively.
The high school shelter was housing about 75 people at the time of the news conference, Dixon said.
East Peoria, an adjacent suburban city also in the blast zone, said in a post that evacuees could also go to the EastSide Center.
Peoria police work in partnership with the FBI, said Special Agent Ryan Presley, field office manager for the Springfield, Illinois, office.
The police chief urged residents to take evacuation mandates seriously.
“Let us know if you need help, we’ll help you access resources. … But please, if you’re in the blast radius, we’re asking you to get out,” Dixon said.
He declined to say whether anyone had been identified or apprehended in connection with the explosion.
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