Police believe pop bottle bomb caused explosion

The late-night explosion that shook houses and woke residents in west Sioux Falls was the result of a pop bottle bomb.

Police found a burn area at the southwest corner of Ninth Street and Valley View Road at 7 a.m. Friday. The explosion was heard at 12:27 a.m.

The Sioux Falls Police Department received 17 calls about the explosion, and numerous officers throughout the city also reported hearing the sound, according to Sgt. Kevin Henkel. A majority of the calls came from the area of Ninth and Valley View, which is between Marion Road and Sertoma Road.

Sam Clemens, police spokesman, said an officer found remnants of a 2-liter pop bottle near the intersection and burn site. A pop bottle bomb is essentially some type of bottle full of different ingredients that cause the bottle to rupture.

Depending on the type of ingredients used, Clemens said it is possible to make a pop bottle bomb with an explosion large enough to shake houses in the surrounding area.

"Oh, we felt it," said Joy Hanscom who lives in her home at 6305 W. Ninth St. with her husband, Jim. The Hanscoms were in bed when the explosion woke them.

"I thought someone hit a train at first," Jim said. "It was so close and that was the only thing I thought could have made an impact like that."

The couple also thought it could have been from the quarry near the fairgrounds or a tanker truck from a business up the road. But none of those options made sense because the explosion was close enough to make their home shake.

The Hanscoms have lived in their home near Ninth and Valley View for 50 years.

"We've never had anything like this happen before," Joy said. "Especially not so close."

Clemens said there is no history of people injuring themselves from pop bottle bombs, but police typically see smaller versions of the one used Friday morning.

"There is a potential chance of injury," he said. "But there haven't been any reports."

Tips have come into police, but they are still investigating and working to figure out who might have caused it.

Argus 911: Get more crime and safety news at Argus911.com, @Argus911 and on Facebook.