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PARK CITY — A bomb squad removed a box of dynamite from underneath a Park City home Monday, ending the evacuation of the surrounding area, police said.
Excavation crews found old sticks of dynamite that appear to be from the silver mining era in the foundation of a home under construction at 911 Empire Ave., according to Park City police spokesman Phil Kirk.
Excavator John Whiteley said the dynamite didn't seem dangerous but looked like "clay wrapped in a tamale." The paper was quite old, stiff and wet, like it had been left out in the rain, he said.
"It was definitely dynamite!" Construction crews moved sticks of dynamite into this plastic crate before understanding true danger of situation. Old box of dynamite found in crawl space under #ParkCity home being restored (Photo courtesy Julio Rios) @KSL5TV@KSLcom@kslnewsradiopic.twitter.com/UiVD10XQHm
— Ladd Egan (@laddegan) March 26, 2018
"We, probably unwisely, chose to play with it a little bit. We were handling it and breaking it and seeing what was in it. So as it turns out, that was not very smart," Whiteley said.
The dynamite was underneath the home in a crawl space and may have been there for the past 50 to 60 years.
"It was an 8.5 on a 10-scale danger level," Whiteley said. "I think we maybe dodged a little bit of a bullet."
The bomb squad has since removed the dynamite from the property, though they are still unsure how dangerous the explosives are.
"There's always something quirky," said property owner, Tom Peek. "You find old bottles, old things underneath. But not often do you find potentially something explosive under them."
Park City police evacuated the perimeter of the incident from Crescent Street to 12th Avenue and between Lowell Avenue and Empire Avenue. The evacuation was lifted about 1:30 p.m. and residents returned to their homes.
Contributing: Ladd Egan
