Bomb Scare Stops Traffic On Michigan Highway

WHITE PIGEON (WWJ) - A one-mile stretch of U.S. 131 in southern Michigan was shut down for almost three hours, Tuesday,  after a crew of volunteers came across what they said looked like dynamite near a gas pipeline.

WWJ Newsradio 950 spoke with White Pigeon Michigan State Trooper Michael Thyng who said a bomb squad took the device to a field where they realized it was a hoax.

However, Thyng said whoever created the phony bomb took the time to make it appear authentic.

'The way it was designed and taped together and the electrical wiring made me think that there was a good possibility that is was (a real bomb) -- and maybe it just didn't go off," Thyng said.

Thyng said that, although it was a relief that the bomb was not real, it was time consuming for police and an inconvenience for drivers along the busy stretch of highway.

"A lot of semis go through here, because U.S.-12 and U.S.-131 meet... right in the area of where the device was found. And the people traveling north and south on U.S.-131 had to detour two miles out of their way and then swing back around to get back on the road," he said.

Thyng said law enforcement from Grand Rapids and Lansing joined State Police troopers and officers from the White Pigeon Police Department and fire department arrived to assist.

"So, there was a lot of time and energy wasted because someone was trying to play tricks," he said.