ASTORIA, Ore. (AP) — The red-painted wooden dowels attached to an alarm clock and sitting in a pickup truck parked in downtown Astoria looked suspiciously like dynamite to a passerby, who called police. Police were concerned enough to send photos to the Oregon State Police bomb squad, which recommended closing a two-block area around the device. So that’s what police did for more than an hour late Tuesday afternoon.
Police also closed traffic on U.S. Highway 30 in the area.
Sgt. Brad Johnston tells the Daily Astorian that when police located the truck owners, they were told the item “was a prank built for their daughter.” They demonstrated by disassembling it.
The area was reopened shortly before 6 p.m.
___
Information from: The Daily Astorian, http://www.dailyastorian.com