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Bomb squad detonates suspicious package discovered in Sugar House

Posted at 6:46 PM, Sep 30, 2016
and last updated 2016-10-01 00:56:02-04

SALT LAKE CITY -- Bomb Squad personnel successfully detonated a suspicious package Friday night, after an hours-long ordeal that led to building evacuations and road closures in Sugar House.

Police are still investigating to figure out what exactly was in the pressure cooker-looking object, but they stated it did't appear that it contained explosives.

pressure-cooker-in-sugar-houseA bystander provided a photo of the package, which appears to be a pressure cooker, to Fox 13 News. A SugarHouse BBQ employee confirmed she took that photo, after they discovered the object.

Salt Lake City Police said employees at SugarHouse BBQ first reported the suspicious pressure cooker next to their building around 4:45 p.m. Friday, on the corner of of 900 East and 2100 South.

The object was tucked away and hidden in the bushes next to one of the building's stone pillars.

Both roads were closed in the vicinity of that intersection, and SugarHouse BBQ and Got Beauty quickly evacuated. A portion of Smith's parking lot was also evacuated and closed.

Originally, the Hazardous Device Unit sent a robot to X-ray the pressure cooker, but it was not successful. Lieutenant Robin Heiden with Salt Lake City Police said the HDU decided to send a different robot to detonate the object.

A loud explosion echoed through the area, and debris went flying. Lt. Heiden said the building of SugarHouse BBQ suffered some damage, but no one was injured.

After it was determined the pressure cooker was not dangerous and contained no explosives, 21st South and 9th East were immediately reopened, and employees were let back inside SugarHouse BBQ.

Lt. Heiden said the HDU collected evidence from the scene and will process it, to figure out what was actually inside the pressure cooker. They'll also try to figure out who set it there and why.