To the community,

The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office would like to make the public aware of an explosive hazard known as a “works bomb”.

Although the presence of these devices has not been reported in Douglas County, citizens should be aware of their danger.

A “works bomb” is described as a mix of water, aluminum oxide and sodium hydroxide (found in many chemical drain openers) enclosed in a container. The chemical reaction creates a volatile build-up of gases and subsequently detonates the container. The resulting explosion can be severe enough to mangle fingers, or cause second or third degree chemical burns or blindness from the dispersed liquid.

These types of mini bombs have been around for many years, but have recently seen resurgence in several U.S. states. In one instance, one of these devices was left in the yard of an unsuspecting person who luckily called law enforcement officers to investigate it. The bottle was found to be set as a boobytrap, so that anyone picking it up would cause the contents to mix, resulting in the inevitable explosion.

For further information on these incidents, citizens can check news stories from Washington Heights and Junction Park, NY; Eudora, KS; and Detroit and York Township, MI.

DCSO advises citizens that if they should find such a device, to leave it alone and call law enforcement to investigate it further.

Parents should warn their children of the dangers of crafting or playing with such devices.

In most states, including Nevada, it is a criminal offense to construct or set such a device. In the state of Nevada it is a felony crime punishable by imprisonment in the state prison for one to four years, with fines of up to $5,000.

Anyone with any information regarding persons assembling such devices is asked to call the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office at (775) 782.5126, or the Douglas County Secret Witness line at (775) 78.CRIME.

Ron Pierini, Douglas County sheriff