Northwest Indiana Discussion

SAFETY MESSAGE

Good Afternoon

The 4th of July holiday is approaching and I am sure many have heard their share of firecrackers and fireworks already. Unfortunately, some have taken it a step further and have used items off the shelf to literally construct a very dangerous homemade explosive device. I am very concerned that the continued use of these home made devices are going to end up in serious injury.

Last night, at approximately 11:30pm, we took in a report of an explosion in the 3000 block of Lisa Street here in Portage. Our investigation found that someone had placed a device made of PVC and bottle rockets into a mailbox and then detonated it. Part of the mailbox made it's way to the next street, parts of the box were strewn on surrounding roof tops and the 4 x 4 post that held the mailbox was literally splintered. Again, I am not speaking of the normal bangs we hear around this time of year, but rather a very loud explosion that is sure to get your attention.

Witnesses did see two kids on a bike that may have been associated with this event last night, although we are not certain of that. Please, if you see or hear anything that may be related to this, please contact us immediately. I obviously do not want to go into details as to how the device is assembled, but suffice it to say that it involves PVC pipe and bottle rockets. If you see anything that resembles these items, do not touch it, get away from it and dial 911.

Of course details as to how to make these things are found on the internet. Parents, take a look and see what sites your children are visiting, this is a serious matter and we all need to do what we can to prevent injury...or worse.

Thank you

Mark J. Becker
Chief of Police
Portage Police Department