Serial bomber suspected after blasts
AUSTIN, Texas — A package bomb containing nails and shrapnel that was destined for an address in Austin, Texas, exploded at a FedEx Corp distribution center in San Antonio, injuring one employee, fire officials said.
That blast came two days after the latest of four powerful homemade bombs set off in Austin this month that have killed two people and injured six more in what police warn appears to be the work of a serial bomber.
The package exploded shortly after midnight local time at a distribution facility in Schertz, Texas, outside of San Antonio, about 100 kilometers south of Austin, the San Antonio Fire Department said on Twitter.
The first three devices were parcel bombs dropped off at night in front of homes on the city’s east side, with the fourth a trip wire device that went off in a west side neighborhood. All four devices were similar, police said.
“We are clearly dealing with what we expect to be a serial bomber at this point,” Austin Police Chief Brian Manley told a news conference.
Two men were injured on Sunday by the bomb, which police said may have been activated by a trip wire across a sidewalk. It was a more advanced design than the previous bombs.
The men, 22 and 23 years old, were taken to a hospital with what police described as “substantial” but not lifethreatening injuries.
Noel Holmes, whose house is about a mile away, was stunned by how loud Sunday’s explosion was.
“It sounded like a very nearby cannon,” Holmes said. “We went out and heard all the sirens, but it was eerie. You didn’t feel like you should be outside at all.”
Manley said more than 500 federal agents were involved in the investigation, including from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and US Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
“There is an army of law enforcement folks on the scene right now,” Austin Mayor Steve Adler said on CNN. “I am confident that we’re going to find whoever is responsible for this and then we’re going to stop it.”
Home surveillance
FBI agents have swept the relatively affluent neighborhood called Travis Country where Sunday’s bomb exploded and asked residents for home surveillance videos, residents said.
“It’s scary,” said Thad Holt, a 76-year-old retiree, adding that he and his wife had strolled near the bomb site half an hour before the explosion. “It’s one of those things ... that happens elsewhere.”
Authorities repeated prior warnings about not touching unexpected packages and also issued new ones to be wary of any stray object left in public, especially one with wires protruding.
“We’re very concerned that with tripwires, a child could be walking down a sidewalk and hit something,” said Christopher Combs, FBI agent in charge of the bureau’s San Antonio division.