WESTFIELD – First, a bomb exploded in a yard on Allen Avenue.
Days later, three similar bombs exploded near residences on St. Paul Street.
Most recently, a bomb exploded on the Great River Bridge, one exploded on Orange Street, an undetonated bomb was found nearby and a group of suspected juvenile bomb makers have been identified and are under investigation.
City police report that at 7:19 p.m. Sunday a caller reported that a boy about 15-years-old, who had been with a girl and about five other boys, had thrown a “bottle bomb” on to the southbound span of the bridge, where it exploded.
The bomb which exploded was found to have been what State Trooper Michael Mazza, an investigator assigned to the state fire marshal’s office, has explained is a “chemical reaction bomb”, typically constructed in a soda bottle from household chemicals.
The components are kept separate in the bottle and, when they are combined, release a great deal of rapidly expanding gas which bursts the container which becomes shrapnel and also sprays the area with a toxic fluid.
Officer Richard Mazza was the first officer to arrive and was soon joined by officers Matthew Schultze, Michael Cekovsky and Scott Phelon.
Mazza reports that a witness made a tentative identification of the bomb thrower and he went to the boy’s home where he spoke with his aunt who has custody of the boy.
The woman said that the boy had left earlier but another family member told Mazza that she had seen the boy assembling a bomb with a friend she identified.
He went to the new suspect’s home and found him there.
Officer Mazza was joined by Trooper Mazza and a city detective for the interview of the boy who revealed that additional devices had been planted under a railroad trestle on Orange Street.
Trooper Mazza said Monday that officers searched for the devices and found that one had exploded but the other had not detonated as planned.
Trooper Mazza pointed out that the failure of one of the bombs to explode is an example of the unpredictability of such bombs.
In reference to other similar bombs, Mazza has said that bottle bombs are not only a danger to persons who find one but also to the bomb maker due to their inherent instability.
They are sometimes left where somebody can find a bottle that appears to simply be litter but, if disturbed by a person who picks one up, can explode.
He said that the devices can inflict serious bodily injury and can even be fatal.
He warns that persons should be cautious if they see a bottle with a cap on it, particularly if it shows any signs of bulging or if the contents do not visually match the label on the bottle
A bomb technician from the State Police bomb squad responded to deal with the unexploded bomb and, with robotic equipment, “rendered the device harmless.”
Officer Mazza reports that his investigation revealed a third suspect but, when he spoke with that boy, he denied that he had participated in the incidents although he said he knew of them.
He said that he had been present but left when others started to assemble bombs.
The boy identified four additional suspects and said that two other boys whose names he does not know had been involved.
Westfield police and state troopers will continue the investigation.
