Bomb squad detonates device on campus grounds

Gil Riego Jr. / Roundup

Monday around 6 p.m., Pierce College lent its facilities for the detonation of a “military-grade pyrotechnic device” acquired during an arrest by the Los Angeles Police Department’s Topanga Division earlier that day.

When the object was found, LAPD’s bomb squad was called in and Pierce was suggested as a safe place for its detonation, according to officer Don Thompson.

“It was a device that could have triggered if it were dropped, so a nearby location was optimal for the procedure,” Thompson said. “It was nothing major, it was something more of a firework.”

Prior to the arrival of the LAPD, Pierce President Robert Garber was notified and asked if it was permissible to set off the pyrotechnic device on campus, according to Sheriff’s Deputy Jeanine Swanson.

Detective Supervisor Doug Stice said the situation called for immediate attention.

“There was no affiliation to Pierce,” Stice said. “Pierce did a community service by allowing us to set off the device (on campus).”

Stice stated that if the threat were any larger, another location would have been selected to detonate the package.

With a central office in Downtown L.A., arriving at Pierce to handle the situation would be a difficult commute for the bomb squad.

“Luckily for me, I live about 10 minutes away from Pierce,” Thompson said. “I was on call for the week, and when the call came in I had it easier than the others.”

This wasn’t the first time a call came in for the bomb squad to come onto Pierce. The last time was Feb. 20, 2007, when they detonated a suspicious package in Parking Lot 7 that was found near the Child Development Center.

Los Angeles Police Department detective supervisor Doug Stice walks away from the detonation zone after setting off a military-grade pyrotechnic device, found in an off- campus arrest, by Parking Lot 8. “The device was recieved by an arrest and we chose Pierce to detonate it,” said Stice. “If it were anything larger, we wouldn’t have picked here.” (Gil Riego Jr. / Roundup)

Los Angeles Police Department officer Don Thompson sets up the military pyrotechnic device in the farm area beside Parking Lot 8 of Pierce College Monday, April 20, 2009, to be set off. “It was a community service that Pierce did to allow us to set off the device,” said Thompson. (Gil Riego Jr. / Roundup)

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