Neighbor reacts to detonation of old dynamite found in Holladay home

HOLLADAY, Utah — Evacuations have been lifted in a Holladay neighborhood after fire crews detonated a cache of old dynamite inside a home.

Smoke poured out of the home for hours as crews worked following the detonation early Wednesday morning.

Neighbors returned to their homes Wednesday morning after being evacuated. 

Steve Hansen lives just down the road from the Holladay home where the dynamite was found. He said that he hadn’t seen anything like this in the more than 20 years he’s lived in this neighborhood.

 He was still at work when crews first arrived at the scene on Tuesday. However, his wife was home. 

“She thought first they were filming a movie, then she found out what it was,” Hansen said.

The couple chose not to evacuate. They remained inside through the night with yellow and black caution tape tied to their door.

Around 4 a.m. Hansen said he saw one of the controlled detonations of the old dynamite. “It looked like a great big bomb, the whole sky was lit up,” he said.

He also said the shockwave was so strong it shook the ground. A very loud boom followed. 

Now that the old dynamite has been detonated, what happens next? 

Authorities are still investigating the incident. Despite being so close to so many homes, one neighbor, who asked to remain anonymous told KSL NewsRadio, he wasn’t feeling on-edge after returning home from evacuation.

“It’s great that someone caught it,” he said.

Hansen shared that sentiment, adding, “There are some old homes around here, so you don’t know what’s in some of these homes,” he said.

Related: Crews detonate ‘ancient dynamite’ found in Holladay home

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