Bomb Found at Illinois Ethanol Plant Forces Evacuation of 5,000 as FBI Hunts for Who Planted It
A device deemed a "credible threat" outside a riverfront ethanol plant triggered a mile-wide evacuation that stretched more than 20 hours, and investigators still don't know who left it.
A bomb discovered outside an ethanol plant on the Peoria, Illinois riverfront forced the evacuation of more than 5,000 residents and workers for most of a day, as the FBI and ATF worked to disarm the device and hunt for whoever planted it.
The BioUrja Renewables plant notified police of a bomb threat at 1:08 p.m. Friday, according to local officials. Officers located a suspicious package within the hour, but it took nearly five more hours of examination before investigators determined it was a credible bomb. Bomb technicians finally rendered it safe at around 9:12 p.m., according to reporting from the Washington Post.
Police ordered an evacuation of everyone within a one-mile radius of the plant, and CNN reported that emergency crews moved more than 5,000 residents and workers out of the blast zone, with a local high school pressed into service as a shelter. Peoria Mayor Rita Ali said the facility stores ethanol and other highly combustible chemicals, which is what worried officials enough to clear such a wide area overnight.
A Hunt With No Suspect Yet
The FBI's Springfield field office took the lead alongside Peoria police, with Special Agent Ryan Presley confirming that bureau and ATF bomb technicians and certified explosive specialists assisted at the scene. By Saturday afternoon, authorities lifted the evacuation order after confirming no additional devices were found in the area. But as of Saturday evening, no arrests had been announced, and investigators have not said whether they've identified a suspect.
NO ARRESTS. NO MOTIVE DISCLOSED. JUST A MILE OF A MIDWESTERN RIVERFRONT CITY EMPTIED OUT OVERNIGHT.
BioUrja Renewables, which has owned the Peoria plant since 2021, has not released a detailed public statement on the incident beyond cooperating with investigators. The scare came less than 24 hours after a separate, unrelated technology failure triggered a nationwide FAA ground stop on Friday — a reminder of how disruptive a single Friday can get even without the two events being connected.
Residents allowed back into the evacuation zone Saturday described a tense, confusing night of shelter-in-place orders and conflicting information about how close the danger actually came to homes near the plant. The FBI has asked anyone with information about the device to come forward as the investigation continues into next week.