Residents of the Lonsdale area in Knoxville were given the all-clear to return to their homes after bomb squad technicians successfully cleared a box filled with dynamite. This update came after a period of tension and mandatory evacuations due to the threat posed by the explosives. According to WBIR 10News, the Knoxville Police Department (KPD) maintained the closure of Western Avenue between Tennessee and Texas avenues as crews continued the disposal process.
The ordeal began when workers at a CMC Recycling facility stumbled upon a 1000lb steel box while using a torch, which started to emit smoke and was later discovered to contain ammonium nitrate, an ingredient in dynamite. Being smoke, that indicates the possibility of a fire, necessitated a careful approach from the responding technicians. KPD spokesperson Scott Erland told WVLT News that the smoldering and smoke observed earlier on Thursday during the response were caused by a section of the box that had caught fire.
Safety measures included evacuating a half-mile radius around the recycling center and initiating a disposal procedure deemed standard by ATF regulations – dousing the dynamite in diesel and igniting it to burn away the threat. As per a statement obtained by WVLT News, ATF Special Agent and Certified Explosives Specialist Jason Dobbs detailed, "Commercial explosives in general as long as they're in decent condition are really not high risk on their own."
Despite the methodical protocols, a disconcerting discovery was made when Knoxville police found that blast caps were stored with the dynamite, a direct violation of ATF protocol that significantly raises the risk of explosion. Knoxville Fire Department stressed that such storage practices were not in line with ATF standards. The KPD confirmed that the dynamite was commercial-grade, adding another layer of complexity to the situation as they conducted the disposal amidst safety concerns for surrounding neighborhoods, a Knoxville Fire Department official told WBIR 10News.
The origins of the dynamite box, which was on the recycling facility's site for several days, are still unclear. CMC Recycling is working to pinpoint whom they received the metal box from. While there's no current indication that the box was left with criminal intent, as WIVK News reports, KPD and fire officials are staying vigilant, making every effort to secure the area and mitigate any further risk to the community as they wrap up disposal operations.
