AUSTIN, Texas — The Austin Police Department’s Bomb Squad removed around 40 lbs. of degraded explosives from a vacant home in northeast Austin on Monday.
Police responded to the 11900 block of Dove Haven Drive, just east of Interstate 35 near the Walnut Creek Greenbelt.
APD says a landlord found the explosives had been stored for a long time. Police say when explosives are in a degraded state, they can be highly dangerous to remove.
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Julia Johnson has lived off Oak Haven Road in northeast Austin since the 1960s.
It’s an old neighborhood,” Johnson said. “Everybody around here knows me. They think of me as granny because I’m the oldest one around.”
At 92 years old, she was in the backyard mowing her own lawn when, just down the street, when Austin Police arrived with its bomb squad, along with Austin Fire and Austin-Travis County EMS.
“I didn’t hear any sirens or anything, and it’s very quiet around here on this little bend,” Johnson said.
Several agencies, including APD’s Bomb Squad and Austin Fire, are working to figure out a way to deal with the explosives without having to remove them from the neighborhood.
Austin police said neighbors in the area received a text or call message alert to shelter in place.
“I’m surprised I wasn’t there when it was going to blow or something,” Johnson said. “That’s terrible. I’m very shocked, very shocked.”
Firefighters could be seen helping with controlled detonations. Smoke could be seen at one point, but there were no flames or loud explosions.
“Ultimately we don’t want these devices to explode, so we have a lot of technical experience in how to deal with these in place to make the impact as minimal as possible; it’s still a very dangerous process,” Myrick said.
With so many new families in her neighborhood, Johnson says she’s grateful to law enforcement.
“I’m glad that they’re handling it because now the threat will be diffused completely,” Johnson said.
Police finished handling the explosives around 10 p.m. No injuries or property damage was reported.
Austin police said no criminal charges are expected.
This developing story will be updated with more information.
