Two bomb threats- one day

If two bomb threats in one day are unusual for a small town then Roseau, Dominica has had a rare 12 hours.

The first was at Government Headquarters on Kennedy Avenue at about 9 am; the second was at the office of the Integrity in Public Office building on Cross Street (upstairs of the new Electoral Office), about four hours later.

No one has claimed responsibility and police officers say they are investigating.

This morning employees of the Government Headquarters were forced to evacuate due to the threat of a suspicious package found on the compound near the area of the north-eastern gate of Government Headquarters.

According to the Head of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) Superintendent Davidson Valarie about 8:15 am the police received a call about a suspicious package.

"The police responded and the suspicious device was found and identified; the police and the fire department officers who are trained in these areas were summoned to the scene and the device was removed and brought to a safe location where it was opened up and searched," he said.

Valarie informed the press that the package contained sand and stones which was wrapped in copper wire.
He said the area was thoroughly searched and that there was no need for panic.

Valarie added that officers fired gunshots at the package before they began opening it.

"The shots were necessary in the protocol to ensure that it was safe for the police to handle the item they had to shoot it off to open it and do it with some level of security," said Valarie.

He said as a safety measure the employees of the ministerial building were evacuated and the entire area was cut off from the public.

The suspicious package was defused in an area under the bridge which links Goodwill and Roseau.