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Evacuations lifted at UTA transit hub after bomb squad detonates suspicious PVC pipe


Bomb squad personnel on Tuesday afternoon detonated a “suspicious device” discovered inside the Utah Transit Authority Intermodal Hub near 300 South and 600 West, in Salt Lake City.

A foot-long piece of PVC pipe with two end caps was left on a bench inside common area of the hub, according to UTA police Chief Fred Ross.

After the pipe was exploded, officials found the pipe was filled with paint brushes, Ross said. But it had markings on the outside that had made police suspicious.

Ross declined to detail the markings on the pipe.

He said the device was first noticed at about 11:50 a.m.

Everyone one in the transit hub building and on the platform was evacuated, and bomb experts were called to the scene, Ross said.

“When we looked at it, we determined we weren’t going to mess with it,” Ross said. “We were going to call in our bomb squad.”

TRAX service in the area was suspended while the bomb squad detonated the pipe. Service resumed at 2:10 p.m.