The incident Tuesday night at a Goodwill store in Austin, Texas, was not a package explosion, police said.
“Items inside package was not a bomb, rather an incendiary device. At this time, we have no reason to believe this incident is related to previous package bombs,” Austin police tweeted.
#UPDATE: There was no package explosion in the 9800 block of Brodie Ln. Items inside package was not a bomb, rather an incendiary device. At this time, we have no reason to believe this incident is related to previous package bombs. #Breaking #packagebombmurders
— Austin Police Dept (@Austin_Police) March 21, 2018
It appeared another explosion had hit the Austin area Tuesday evening, which would have been the fifth such blast to cause injury or death just in March.
The Austin-Travis County EMS tweeted Tuesday evening that it was responding to a blast that had injured a man in his 30s.
The injuries are “potentially serious, [but] not expected to be life threatening,” the EMS department tweeted.
FINAL Multiple assets #ATCEMS @AustinFireInfo @Austin_Police on scene Brodie Ln/W Slaughter Ln (1902) reported explosion: #ATCEMSMedics transported ~30s male with potentially serious, not expected to be life threatening, injuries to St Davids South Austin. No further info avail.
— ATCEMS (@ATCEMS) March 21, 2018
If that report had held, it would have brought the casualty count of a person authorities are calling a “serial bomber” to six actual explosions, two deaths and five injuries.
Earlier Tuesday, a bomb went off at a FedEx office between Austin and San Antonio, slightly injuring a worker, and a suspicious package that would have been the seventh explosion was instead defused at a FedEx distribution site near the Austin airport.
Tuesday evening’s incident took place in the 9600 block of Brodie Lane, in south Austin, according to the city police department.
#Breaking #AustinPolice is responding to a reported explosion in 9600 block of Brodie Ln in south Austin. Please avoid the area. APD PIO en route.
— Austin Police Dept (@Austin_Police) March 21, 2018
• This article is based in part on wire-service reports.
• Victor Morton can be reached at vmorton@washingtontimes.com.
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