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U.S. NEWS Wednesday 16 OctOber 2019

A tank burns as fire breaks out at a refinery in Crockett, Calif., on
Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2019.
Associated Press
California oil

facility fire prompts Marnie Wedgwood hugs her son after an improvised explosive device detonated on the Rossiter

warnings to residents Elementary school playground Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2019, in Helena, Mont. Associated Press

Bomb scare at Montana school

CROCKETT, Calif. (AP) — A population 8,700. The de-
fire at an oil storage facil- partment urged residents turns out to be false alarm
ity in the San Francisco Bay to stay inside and close all
Area prompted a hazard- windows and doors.
ous materials emergency "Cover any cracks around By AMY BETH HANSON no detonator attached to while authorities swept for
Tuesday afternoon that led doors or windows with tape Associated Press the bottle. bombs, authorities said.
authorities to order about or damp towels. Stay off HELENA, Mont. (AP) — Au- A homeless person found Searches also were con-
12,000 people in two com- the phone unless you need thorities evacuated an el- the bottle at a construction ducted at the state Capitol
munities to stay inside with to report a life-threatening ementary school in Mon- site and left it at the play- and government buildings,
all windows and doors emergency at your loca- tana's capital city on Tues- ground, he said. No threat Dutton said.
closed. tion." day after officials found had been made against The deputies who respond-
Thick plumes of black The city of Vallejo also what they thought were the school, and there were ed initially believed it was
smoke and flames filled the tweeted that its residents the remnants of a home- no injuries or damage. a bomb, Dutton said. "They
skyline around the NuStar should stay inside. made bomb, but it turned "Pretty much it's solved," were looking at a debris
Energy LP facility in Crock- Contra Costa Fire Depart- out to be a plastic bottle Dutton said Tuesday af- field, what looked like a de-
ett, California, about 30 ment spokesman Steve Hill filled with nuts and bolts left ternoon. "We know who bris field," he said.
miles (50 kilometers) north- said that an hour into bat- in the schoolyard. put it there and it wasn't "It wasn't until we could get
east of San Francisco. tling the blaze, which start- School officials made the malicious. It did look like a the bomb squad in there
"This is a very dynamic, rap- ed around 2 p.m., firefight- discovery shortly before bomb. The school acted and the evidence team
idly evolving situation," said ers seemed to be making classes began at Rossiter appropriately." that we learned exactly
Capt. George Laing of the progress and were keep- Elementary School. They The 490 students walked to what it was," Dutton said.
Contra Costa Fire Depart- ing adjacent tanks cooled blocked off the area and a nearby location where "You wouldn't expect any
ment. "We've got two tanks with water. Interstate 80 called 911 at about 8:20 they could be picked up by patrol deputy to pick it up
that are releasing chemi- was closed. Officials said a.m., said Lewis and Clark their parents, said Superin- and look at it and possibly
cals that are still burning." they did not immediately County Sheriff Leo Dutton. tendent Tyler Ream. School injure himself or others."
The Contra Costa Health know the cause of the fire An investigation found the buses kept them warm. Classes were scheduled to
Department posted on and whether there was any plastic bottle wrapped in Police closed the school resume Wednesday, said
Twitter that there was a connection to a 4.5-magni- black electrical tape was and searched the grounds Ream, who planned to
"hazardous materials emer- tude earthquake Monday full of washers, nuts and for additional devices, meet with teachers and
gency" in the towns of night centered in the East bolts, along with a non- and thousands of students staff to discuss how they
Crockett, home to about Bay city of Pleasant Hill, flammable unidentified liq- across Helena and East would explain Tuesday's
3,100 people, and Rodeo, north of Oakland.q
uid, Dutton said. There was Helena were kept inside events to the children.q