Lafarge bridge, Kamloops.

(BRIE WELTON / iNFOnews.ca)

Police have removed the danger, but plenty of questions remain about who placed explosives in the water under a Kamloops bridge and why.

Police have no suspects after investigating then destroying a bag of explosives found by a Kamloops fisherman two weeks ago.

Kamloops RCMP were called to the Lafarge bridge Aug. 26, where the fisherman pulled a bag from the river before realizing they were explosives submerged in the Thompson River.

The fisherman put the bag back where he found it, just offshore of the boat launch at the north end of the bridge and called police.

The investigation into the incident is almost closed, but many questions remain unanswered.

"The public has called in with some suspicious activity they’ve seen there and we’ve followed up on it as best as we could," Staff Sgt. Sascha Fesenko told iNFOnews.ca. "We can’t definitively tie anything to anybody at this point."

The bag contained a detonator and explosives, all of which were operational. Fesenko said he suspects there's a simple, albeit reckless explanation.

"I suspect it’s a good way for somebody to get rid of those types of items," he said.

The fisherman who found the bag had experience with explosives from working in a mine.

"From what my understanding was, that's why he placed it (back) in the water," Fesenko said. "That would be the safest place for it to be retrieved."

Police do not know where the explosives came from, or why they were found in that particular location. 

"It could be a myriad of things, and I’m not going to speculate on that," Fesenko said. 

Commercial explosives are commonly used in mining and logging for blasting. 

However, a representative from Orica Canada Inc. explained in an email the purchase, storage and use of explosives is heavily regulated by the federal government and cannot be purchased without a licence.  

Fesenko said he has no idea whether or not the explosives found Aug. 26 were a commercial product.   

He added that anyone with further information on the incident still urged to contact Kamloops RCMP.

To contact a reporter for this story, email Brie Welton or call (250) 819-3723 or email the editor. You can also submit photos, videos or news tips to the newsroom and be entered to win a monthly prize draw.

We welcome your comments and opinions on our stories but play nice. We won't censor or delete comments unless they contain off-topic statements or links, unnecessary vulgarity, false facts, spam or obviously fake profiles. If you have any concerns about what you see in comments, email the editor in the link above. 

News from © iNFOnews, 2020