Pipe Bomb Scare Closes Section of Ventura Freeway
Authorities briefly closed a 1 1/2-mile section of the Ventura Freeway on Saturday afternoon after a Caltrans crew found what appeared to be a pipe bomb on an onramp.
The object, described as a steel cylinder about half the size of a soda can, was found at 12:08 p.m. on the Haskell Avenue onramp on the westbound side of the freeway, California Highway Patrol Officer Ron Cohan said.
Authorities initially closed only the ramp while a Los Angeles police bomb squad investigated, according to Sgt. V. Kanchanamongkol of the LAPD’s Van Nuys Division.
Investigators determined at 3 p.m. that the cylinder might be an explosive and the CHP closed the freeway in both directions between the San Diego Freeway and Hayvenhurst Avenue for about 20 minutes, officials said.
“They X-rayed it and they weren’t sure if it was a bomb,” said Kanchanamongkol, adding that investigators observed what appeared to be ball bearings inside the object. “They weren’t going to take a chance on it. They used a water cannon to neutralize it.”
Upon examination, the device proved to be a portion of a vehicle, possibly part of an axle, Kanchanamongkol said.
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