Acid Bomb Discovered in South Redondo

A taped-up blue plastic bottle discarded on the sidewalk along South Juanita Avenue between El Camino Real and Serpentine Street in South Redondo Beach turned out to be an acid bomb, authorities told Patch.

Police first received a call alerting them of a suspicious device at about 8:30 a.m. Tuesday, according to Officer Chris Sosenko of the Redondo Beach Police Department. A passerby had noticed the device while walking along the sidewalk next to Alta Vista Park.

"I walked up to it (and) saw that it looked like some kind of possible explosive device," Sosenko said.

Sosenko called his watch commander. The Redondo Beach Fire Department was notified, and the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Bomb Squad was called out.

Firefighters evacuated the immediate area and notified Alta Vista Elementary School and the recreation center at Alta Vista Park of the device, according to Capt. Isaac Yang of RBFD. Neither the school nor the park were evacuated.

A member of the Bomb Squad neutralized the bomb by shooting it with special ammunition, Sosenko said.

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Acid bombs are created by filling a container, such as a plastic soda bottle, with acid. Aluminum foil is inserted and the container is sealed. As the acid reacts with the foil, the pressure builds up inside until the bottle bursts, Sosenko said.

Though the bomb would not have destroyed a house, it could have injured anyone who might have picked it up, he said.

He said police do not believe the device, which was probably tossed out of a passing car on Monday night, had any connection to the nearby elementary school.

LASD investigators will check the tape for fingerprints, Sosenko said.

Once the device was neutralized and evidence collected, firefighters rinsed down the area and sprinkled baking soda to dilute and neutralize the acid.

People who see any sort of suspicious device in their neighborhood should keep their distance and call 911, Yang said. "Don't investigate it on your own … let it sit where it sits" until authorities arrive.

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