Niagara Falls
“Smoke everywhere”: FBI investigates fatal car explosion on US-Canada border
The US-Canada border crossing was closed after a vehicle exploded at a checkpoint on a bridge near Niagara Falls
© Derek Gee / The Buffalo News via AP / DPA
Shortly before Thanksgiving, an incident at the border with Canada shocked the USA: a car exploded at the border crossing near the famous Niagara Falls. The background is initially unclear.
A car exploded at the US-Canada border. The incident happened at the border crossing between the US state of New York and the Canadian province of Ontario near the famous Niagara Falls, New York State Governor Kathy Hochul said on Wednesday via the short message service X, formerly Twitter.
“We take this extremely seriously,” said Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. They are in close contact with the US authorities. A total of four border crossings have been closed.
The exact course of the incident was initially unclear and there were contradictory reports. According to an eyewitness, the car in question flew several meters high through the air. The vehicle drove at high speed on the US side towards the border with Canada on Wednesday afternoon (local time), said eyewitness Rickie Wilson in front of TV cameras. Then it flew three to four meters high through the air and finally exploded.
Eyewitness: Car was racing towards the Canadian border
Canadian Mike Guenther, who traveled to the USA for Thanksgiving, told US broadcaster CBS that the car was racing towards the border at “more than 100 miles per hour” (more than 160 kilometers per hour). “It was so fast we could barely see it.” The car overtook another vehicle, crashed into a barrier and flew through the air. Then all he saw was a “ball of fire” and “smoke everywhere,” said Guenther.
Another eyewitness told the Niagara Gazette newspaper that he and a friend saw a car driving from a parking lot toward the bridge on the U.S. side of the border. “We heard something banging,” reported eyewitness Ivan Vitali from Ukraine. “We saw fire and a lot of black smoke.”
The two occupants of the car were dead, the US broadcaster CNN initially reported, citing unnamed sources – later there was talk of at least one dead. Otherwise there were no further fatalities, it was said. There was initially no official information. According to media reports, a border guard was slightly injured. There were initially no details about the extent of the damage to the border facilities.
USA closes more border crossings with Canada
The White House said US President Joe Biden had been informed of the incident. He and his team followed developments closely. Hochul announced, after To travel to Buffalo and meet police and rescue workers there.
Governor Hochul said the state police are working together with the Federal Police FBI’s terrorism unit to monitor all access routes to New York. Three other border crossings with Canada in western New York were also initially closed, authorities said. Security precautions have been increased at other border crossings and at some airports. Some official buildings in cities near the incident closed earlier than usual.
The Thanksgiving holiday in the USA is on Thursday, when family and friends traditionally meet. The day before has some of the busiest traffic of the entire year.
Note: This article has been updated