The investigation into the mysterious explosion of a motorhome continued on Saturday, December 26, in Nashville, Tennessee, where Gov. Bill Lee asked the White House to place the state in an emergency situation. the extent of the damage.
The blast, which took place at 6:30 a.m. local time on Friday, devastated part of a shopping thoroughfare in the historic center of the country music capital.
It only caused three minor injuries.
No deaths have been confirmed but tissue has been found at the site of the blast and it could be human remains, according to city police chief John Drake.
At least 41 businesses damaged, telecommunications disrupted
"This morning I took a tour of the explosion area, the damage is shocking and it is a miracle that no residents were killed," Governor Bill Lee wrote on social media on Saturday. .
He called on outgoing President Donald Trump to declare the state of Tennessee in an emergency, given the extensive damage.
According to him, at least 41 businesses were damaged.
"These buildings, many of which are historic, and others, must be examined by engineers for (check) their structural integrity and safety," he said in a letter to the White House.
The camper van was parked in front of an AT&T phone company building, causing damage to facilities that disrupted telecommunications in Tennessee, as well as parts of Alabama and Kentucky.
AT&T said on Saturday that two mobile phone antennas have been installed in downtown Nashville and numerous others in the area to restore communications.
The investigation was entrusted to the federal police and the Federal Agency for Weapons and Explosives (ATF).
"The investigation is continuing, we are ignoring the motive at this point and we are following all available leads," John Drake said Friday evening.
A vehicle exploded Friday morning in downtown Nashville, Tennessee, causing extensive damage.
It would be an "intentional act", according to the police of the city.
"A deliberate act"
According to a timeline described by the governor, police were called to the scene on Friday morning, Christmas Day, for shots fired at 5.30am.
Officers spotted the suspect camper van at 6 a.m.
Fifteen minutes later, officers "heard the recording of a countdown" coming from inside the vehicle warning by loudspeaker that a bomb was going to explode at 6:30 am and calling for the neighborhood to be evacuated.
Police do not know if anyone was inside the camper van at the time of the explosion.
The explosion is "a deliberate act," said Nashville police spokesman Don Aaron, while stressing that he did not know if the AT&T building was specifically targeted.
Police posted a photo of the cream-colored camper van on Twitter before it pulled up to the explosion site, and called for witnesses.
With AFP
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