Residents living in apartment buildings adjacent to the intersection of Anne Street North and Edgehill Drive in Barrie say they were awoken by a loud blast this morning just before 3 a.m.
Emergency crews were called to the scene, near the Anne Street bridge over Highway 400, at 2:56 a.m., on Sept. 27 for what was initially described only as a "significant occurrence" and a "very fluid" situation.
It soon became evident that an improvised explosive device (IED) had exploded in the gas-cap area of an SUV parked in the bottom of the Anne Street hill.
Officers with the explosive disposal unit could be seen inspecting vehicles in the lot at 108A Anne St. N., near Edgehill, after police purposely detonated an object of concern around 8:45 a.m., Wednesday. It is believed to have been a fragment of the initial IED.
Dakotah Porter, who lives in the nearby apartment building at 90 Edgehill, described what she saw from her eighth-floor balcony that faced the bomb scene.
“Around 2:50 a.m., I got woken up by a loud bang,” she told BarrieToday outside of her building. “I came outside (onto the balcony) and didn't see much going on, so I went back to bed.
"Around 6 a.m., I was woken up and I saw the scene going on (with police) with the little robot driving around,” Porter added.
Sandy, who's a resident in the building at 108 Anne St. N., said she “heard something loud" shortly before 3 a.m. She was among several tenants at that location were evacuated around 6:30 a.m.
Many residents from the immediate area could be seen milling about on Anne Street North along sidewalks, with children and dogs, outside of the crime-scene tape placed around the vicinity by police.
Several others could be seen watching the scene unfold from their apartment balconies in nearby highrises.
Police overseeing the road closures also helped residents with their walkers and wheelchairs move away from the scene, as they continued their investigation.
No injuries were reported and the investigation is ongoing.
