2023-11-23 00:12:26
The US authorities are investigating the explosion that occurred this morning on the Rainbow Bridge, the border between Canada and the United States in northern New York State, but no source has so far confirmed that a terrorist motive was behind it, as some media reported.
The only thing that is known with certainty is that the two occupants of a vehicle died in an explosion when they were trying to access the bridge from Canada to the United States, which rises above the famous Niagara Falls.
The bridge has been closed in both directions, as well as three other nearby bridges between Canada and the US as a precaution, while the FBI investigates the incident using drones that flew over the site before nightfall.
It was Canada’s Minister of Public Safety, Dominic LeBlanc, who said that it was “a very serious incident” that Canadian authorities “take very seriously”, but also asked “not to speculate” about the causes.
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New York State Governor Kathy Hochul traveled to Buffalo, the county seat, and said that she had tasked the FBI’s counterterrorism unit and the State Police with monitoring all entry points into the state, but she too did not comment on possible motives or the possibility that it was an accident.
#Now | A few minutes ago an explosion occurred on the Rainbow Bridge, in Niagara Falls, one of the borders that connects the United States and Canada.
At the moment it is unknown what caused the explosion; However, the four border crossings are already closed… pic.twitter.com/aMqlcKN7rC— News 4Vision (@noticias4vision) November 22, 2023
From the federal government in Washington, it was reported that President Joe Biden “had been informed” and that he and his team were closely following the investigations.
The local media Buffalo News cites “a source with knowledge of what happened” and assures that the driver of the damaged vehicle entered the bridge at high speed and invaded a road in the opposite direction, before colliding with a barrier set up by the Traffic Service. Customs and explode.
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A video that began circulating a few minutes ago shows the white vehicle entering the border area at full speed, and a witness cited by the Canadian media assures that the vehicle was going “at 200 kilometers per hour.”
The CNN network showed images of what appears to be a Border Police checkpoint and the charred shell of a vehicle, apparently the result of a large impact.
Although he does not have jurisdiction over that area, the mayor of New York, Eric Adams, announced on of security throughout the city.
“Citizens will see increased security at locations throughout the city, including entry and exit points,” Adams said, which could cause traffic congestion on one of the busiest weekends in the entire city. year for the Thanksgiving holiday that begins tomorrow.
EFE
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