Garbage or Bomb? Here’s how to Tell…

An email is circulating giving information about 2-liter plastic bottles (soda pop bottles) being left on lawns, in mailboxes, etc., that will blow up if picked up or shaken. The email warns readers not to touch the bottle if found.

Snopes.com (urban legend website) and Boise Police Department confirm this is true. The calls we receive on these bottle bombs are very low in number in the Boise area. It is important to have accurate information so you know how to protect yourself and what information to call into police dispatch.

The Boise Police Department Bomb Unit suggests:

If you find a plastic soda pop bottle with a cap, containing aluminum foil and a milky liquid. Call 911. Do NOT pick up or disturb the bottle. It is caustic. It can blow up spontaneously. It can cause serious injury.

If you find an empty soda pop bottle, it’s probably garbage.