Suspicious package near Maasmechelen Village turns out to be a false alarm: army accidentally leaves counterfeit explosive behind (Domestic)

It was employees of the utility company Fluvius who found the suspicious package. They raised the alarm with the police because it was not immediately clear what it was about. They did fear the risk of explosion. That is why the DOVO mine clearance service was called. While it was their job to investigate the package, the police consulted to establish a security perimeter.

Village evacuated

It was decided to establish a perimeter of 300 meters. Not only were several roads near Leon Bekaertlaan closed to traffic, the access road to Maasmechelen Village was also closed and the shopping center even had to be evacuated. In the meantime, the Lanaken-Maasmechelen police zone provided the necessary assistance to colleagues in the Maasland zone.

While traffic disruption in the region continued to increase due to preventive safety measures, it became clear that this was a false alarm.

Practice bomb

The suspicious package was a counterfeit explosive. The so-called improvised bomb, known within the army as an IED, had previously been used during an exercise by the Belgian army in the nature reserve on the border of Dilsen-Stokkem and Maasmechelen.

Normally the soldiers take all their training equipment back with them after training, but this time they were careless and it was left behind.