CLINTON TOWNSHIP, Mich. (WXYZ) — The Michigan State Police Bomb Squad responded to reports of gas canisters and shrapnel in people's yards in Clinton Township. The debris came from Monday night's explosion at facility near 15 Mile Road and Groesbeck Highway.
“I never thought I’d have to call the fire department or bomb squad to be out here in my front yard," Lacey, a Clinton Township resident, told 7 Action News.
She had a clear view of the explosions from her backyard but didn't discover the gas canister that landed in her front yard until the next morning.
“I’m just glad it cleared the house. Like I said, angels were watching over. They had to have been because this really could have did some damage,” she said. “You were just rocked (by the explosions).”
Her neighbor said the MSP Bomb Squad also recovered shrapnel from a gas canister in their backyard.
They live right across from the car wash on 15 Mile Road where debris struck a 19-year-old. Sadly, he died to his injuries.
Nico G, another Clinton Township resident, said he was standing 8 to 10 feet from the 19-year-old victim. He said hundreds of people gathered to watch the explosions as police ordered the crowd back to move back.
“I’m grateful that I didn’t get hurt or anything like that, but it’s a tragedy. It’s sad," the man said.
Authorities are still working to determine how large the debris field is. But at one point, they said it could extend as far as a mile away. The extent of the damage in the area is also unknown, but everyone is encouraged to take precaution.
Robert Cannon, the Clinton Township supervisor, said during a press conference, “We don’t want our residents, our children especially, picking up any of these shrapnels or even worse, some of the containers that are still full of the gas or whatever is in there.”
Anyone who comes across canisters or questionable debris is encouraged to call 586-469-5502.
