Bomb scare sees evacuation and road closures
Last Thursday, the excitement in Caledon Street in the morning at the opening of a new store was followed in the afternoon by chaos and fear due to a bomb threat.
The new Ackermans store opened in Caledon Street that morning, and the street was thronging with people and the store packed with customers looking for bargains.
However at 15:00 in the afternoon it was a very different story, as stores in the area were evacuated. The section of Caledon Street between the Groot Kerk and Bourke Street was cordoned off by the local police and traffic officials in response to the threat.
Calls were received by both OK Furniture and the adjacent Herholdt Store from an unknown male soon after 14:00, stating in each case that there was a bomb in the store. The employees immediately told the store managers, who contacted the police at about 14:30.
Senior officers were dispatched to the street, and other nearby shops were evacuated as a precaution. The stretch of Caledon Street between the Groot Kerk and Bourke Street was cordoned off, and terrified shoppers fled from the area. Rumours as to the location of the possible bomb abounded, as initially, people were saying that the bomb was in the new Ackermans store, and then Spandau Spar.
The local K9 unit was also quickly on the scene with a dog trained to find explosives, but nothing was detected. The search continued, and later the Explosives Unit from Port Elizabeth (the closest unit) arrived to take over control of the search.
The street remained cordoned off until 19:00, but shortly after this the members of the Explosives Unit finished searching the two stores and declared the area to be safe.
In response to a request from the police, the Advertiser published the story on its website as it unfolded, urging people to stay away from the area. “Members of the public who arrived just to see what was happening, not only hindered the work of the police, but also obviously had scant regard for their own safety,” said a police spokesperson.
The posts on Facebook generated many comments from the public, often wildly inaccurate, with some suggesting that the police knew the suspect and that an arrest was imminent.
However this was not the case, and the police have not released any further information since last week except to say that the investigation is ongoing.
“The investigation is in a very sensitive stage, therefore we cannot give more information as it may jeopardise our investigation,” said Brig Rudolph Adolph, Cluster Commander for the Graaff-reinet district SAPS.