READING, Mass. (WHDH/AP) — Police said they have determined that a suspicious device that triggered an evacuation in a Reading neighborhood was not a bomb.
A man in Reading called police Wednesday night to say he had discovered what he suspected to be a pipe bomb while mowing his lawn on Rachel Road.
A state police bomb squad blew up the device after examining it with a robotic machine.
They said the device, described as a pipe with wires sticking out of it, was found not to be a bomb. After being destroyed, it was taken away for further testing.
“It had a wire going through both ends,” David Lilly said. “I said what the heck is that.”
After several hours, residents were allowed to return to their homes. Police said there is no threat to the community.
Libby said he is puzzled by how the pipe ended up where it did.
“Thankfully nobody got hurt,” Lilly said.
The incident is under investigation.
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