The mystery involves the motivation behind the detonation of an apparent bomb on the streets of downtown Nashville, which shook Tennessee’s largest city on Christmas morning, while investigators continued to search the wreckage for clues.
Three people were slightly injured in the blast and some possible human remains were found near the site of the exploding RV that caused serious damage to historic downtown Nashville. But it is not clear whether or how the remains are linked to the incident.
What is certain is the bizarre nature of the attack.
Police were responding to a morning report of shots fired when they found the trailer with a recorded warning that a bomb would go off in 15 minutes, said Metro Nashville Police Chief John Drake. The police evacuated nearby buildings and called the bomb squad. The RV exploded soon after.
The police believe the explosion was intentional, but still do not know the reason or target, and Drake noted that the officers had not received any threats before the explosion.
The chief said investigators at the scene “found tissue that we believe may be debris, but we will examine it and let you know at that time.” The police could not say whether it potentially came from someone inside the trailer.
Three people taken to local hospitals for treatment were in stable condition on Friday night, said Nashville Mayor John Cooper.
“This morning’s attack on our community aimed to create chaos and fear in this time of peace and hope. But the Nashvillians have repeatedly proved that the spirit of our city cannot be broken, ”Cooper said at a news conference after a curfew was issued for the area.
The explosion sent black smoke and flames from the center of Nashville’s tourist scene, an area full of restaurants, shops and restaurants. Buildings swayed and windows shattered on the streets of the blast near an AT&T-owned building one block from the company’s office tower, a landmark in the city center.
On Saturday morning, teams of experts were still collecting debris from a wide area of the blast site. The damage to the AT&T building sparked speculation that he was the target of the attack.
“We don’t know if this was a coincidence or if that was the intention,” said police spokesman Don Aaron. He said earlier that some people had been taken to the department’s central police station for questioning, but declined to give details.
AT&T said the affected building is the central office of a telephone exchange, with network equipment in it. The explosion interrupted the service, but the company declined to say how widespread the disruptions were.
The AT&T outage website showed service problems in central Tennessee and Kentucky. Several law enforcement agencies reported that their 911 systems were disabled because of the outage, including Knox County, home in Knoxville about 180 miles (290 km) east of Nashville.
AT&T said it was bringing portable cell phone locations and working with the police to gain access to and repair its equipment. The company noted that “energy is essential to restore” the service.
The Federal Aviation Administration has temporarily suspended flights from Nashville airport because of telecommunications problems associated with the explosion.
The FBI will take the lead in the investigation, said agency spokesman Joel Siskovic. Federal investigators from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were also on the scene. The FBI is the primary law enforcement agency responsible for investigating federal crimes, such as explosive violations and acts of terrorism.