‘Possible explosives’ prompt temporary evacuation of northeast Edmonton homes

Edmonton police are evacuating people from homes in north Edmonton as they prepare to clear potential explosives from a house in the area.

Edmonton police are planning to evacuate a northeast townhome complex while clearing “potential explosives” from a home near 50 Street and 131 Avenue.

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On April 26, police carrying out a welfare check on a man at the home found containers of various “unknown chemicals and substances” and materials that could be related to making explosives.

Edmonton Police Service (EPS) Insp. Sean Anderson said chemists and explosive experts surveyed the contents of the home and found there was no immediate risk to the public.

The house was secured and held as a crime scene while the bomb disposal unit worked with other agencies to investigate the chemicals in question.

“Tomorrow, we will begin conducting a more thorough search of the home and removal of the hazardous materials,” Anderson said on Tuesday.

“The process of moving the materials may introduce some hazards, which is why, out of an abundance of caution, we are asking the selected residents to evacuate their homes.”

Residents along a portion of Habitat Crescent N.W. have been asked to leave their homes by 9 p.m. on Tuesday and prepare to be away from home for up to several days.

Any residents without suitable accommodations will be provided temporary housing and food by the City of Edmonton and the Red Cross, through the Emergency Operations Centre.

Police said it’s unknown at this time exactly how long the evacuation will be in place and residents should wait for police updates before returning home.

“We recognize that this is a significant inconvenience for the residents, and we will do our best to get them back into their homes as soon as it is safe to do so,” Anderson said.

EPS won’t be removing residents from their homes if they want to accept the risk and stay at home, he added.

“Please do take this seriously,” said area Coun. Aaron Paquette. “This may be an event that reaches the worst case scenario. Believe that.

“Now, it is possible that this is contained within hours, however we cannot prepare for the best in this scenario. We must prepare for the worst.”

Natural gas in evacuated homes may be shut off while officers work and area roads will be limited to essential traffic.

Paquette said homes outside the evacuation area have been deemed safe, but added parents may want to keep children inside during the police operation.

Anderson said police don’t yet know why the “substances” were being stored in the home and that no charges had yet been laid against the man.

“It’s entirely possible that there’s a non-criminal reason for this individual possessing the chemicals, and they’re just not stored properly,” he explained.