Castlegar car bomb raises explosive issues
By Kyra Hoggan
A car bomb that exploded in Ootischenia this morning has brought up a number of issues, not the least of which (of course) is “whodunit”. Police say they don’t yet have any suspects in the bombing, which occurred in the 1300 block of Columbia Road at about 1 a.m. “Castlegar RCMP officers responded, and located a 1992 car that was parked on the property,” said Sgt. Laurel Mathew. ”It appears that someone put an explosive device inside the car, which exploded and caused major damage to the car. “The device was powerful enough to blow out the windows of the car, the windshield was completely blown out and landed about 60 feet from the car. The doors and roof also sustained major damage, but remained intact.” “It’s hard to tell, because it’s been blown to smithereens, but it looks like it might have been a pipe bomb of some sort.” The 1992-model car was destroyed. Luckily, the car doors were closed, limiting the range of the blast, but Mathew said several people in the neighbourhood were woken by the noise, and some even felt the concussion in their homes, with windows rattling and such. What Mathew can’t explain is why no one called police until 8 a.m., almost seven full hours after the explosion. “I don’t know why no one called it in – I’m surprised,” she said. “If you hear something that’s loud enough to startle you and rattle your house, it’s best you call us. “Whoever did it could have still been lurking around, or we could’ve called in the K-9 unit in case (the culprit) fled on foot. It gives us a head start.” “We’d rather come out and find nothing than be called in seven hours after the fact.” Mathew said police have no reason to believe the bomb is in anyway related to the Sons of Freedom, a group held responsible for several local bombings decades ago. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Castlegar RCMP detachment at 250-365-7721. The investigation continues.
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