- On Wednesday, a vehicle exploded at a bridge on the U.S.-Canada border near Niagara Falls, killing the car’s two occupants.
- The governor of New York State sought to reassure the population on the eve of Thanksgiving, assuring that there were “no signs of terrorist activity.”
- According to the Erie County Sheriff’s Office, it was a “fatal motor vehicle accident” in which the vehicle accelerated for an unknown reason, then was thrown into the air before crashing into a pillar, resulting in a fire and subsequent explosion.
After several hours of intense tension, Americans can breathe deeply and prepare for a peaceful Thanksgiving celebration. The explosion of a car on the border between the United States and Canada, at the entrance to a bridge near Niagara Falls, which claimed the lives of the vehicle’s two occupants on Wednesday, appears to be more than a simple accident. There are “no signs of terrorist activity,” assured New York State Governor Kathy Hochul. The Fox News channel, which immediately spoke of an “attempted attack,” retracted its incorrect information.
The Rainbow Bridge, a border bridge between the United States and Canada near Niagara Falls, was closed to traffic on Wednesday after a vehicle exploded, the FBI office in the city of Buffalo, New York, said. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau spoke to Parliament of a “very serious situation” without giving further details.
Canadian Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc said there was “conflicting information” about the incident and it was too early for “speculation.” While Fox News initially claimed it was an “attempted terrorist attack” involving a vehicle containing explosives, NBC News and The New York Times said preliminary research had found no explosives.
FBI terrorist unit mobilized
According to the video surveillance footage described to CNN, the vehicle actually came from the American side and not the Canadian side. After an initial inspection, the car accelerated at high speed and after initial contact was thrown into the air before crashing into a concrete pillar. A collision occurred, followed by a fire and an explosion.
Images shared by Buffalo’s local ABC station show a charred car wreck and a heavily damaged toll booth.