Police are seeking clues after what was described as an improvised explosive device fashioned from a propane canister was ignited on a driveway in Pasadena on Sunday morning, but apparently failed to detonate, authorities said.
The incident was first reported just before 4 a.m. in a residential driveway in the 1800 block of North Madison Avenue, Pasadena police Lt. Pete Hettema said.
“Residents awoke to a flame coming from the driveway in front of the house and a hissing sound,” the lieutenant said. Firefighters quickly responded and extinguished the flames.
“The flame was coming from a small canister similar to a propene tank,” he said. Though the device had been burned and melted, investigators initially suspected the canister had been placed on top of a tray or pan, which was then filled with flammable liquid and set ablaze.
“It appeared the device was intended to be an IED that failed to explode,” according to Hettema. “Based on the configuration of the device, the bomb squad respond and took the device.”
There were no indications as to a motive, and no information about any possible suspects. The investigation was ongoing.
Sunday morning’s fire was not the first unexplained potential arson attack in Pasadena in recent months.
An unidentified man tossed what police described as a homemade pyrotechnic device into a crowded Cheesecake Factory restaurant on Colorado Boulevard on Feb. 2.
It resulted in no injuries and no serious damage, officials said.
After exhausting investigative leads, the FBI released video surveillance camera footage depicting a possible suspect and offered a $20,000 reward for information leading to the capture and conviction of the attacker, Deidre Fike, assistant director of the FBI’s Los Angeles field office, said at the time. The case remains unsolved.
Anyone with information can reach Pasadena police at 626-744-4241. Tips may also be submitted anonymously to L.A. Regional Crime Stoppers at 800-222-8477.