NY port vacated due to suspicious containers

NEW YORK: Two suspicious containers from Pakistan forced an evacuation of a Seattle port terminal in North America after bomb-sniffing dog indicated they could contain explosives.

However no explosives, bombs, chemical or biological agent was found, officials said.

The suspicion was raised on Wednesday when scanning by a gamma ray device suggested presence of articles which were not declared in the inventory. A bomb sniffing dog too reacted and it led to the evacuation of the terminal.

Officials said the containers were supposed to contain oily rags, which are often shipped internationally for recycling or for the use of packaging.

The gamma ray device determines the density of the cargo and gives clue to whether it matches with the manifest.

A bomb squad was summoned which detonated small charges to create tiny holes for the investigators to determine what was inside. They found no radioactive material or explosives but it was not clear whether further search would be carried out.
   
However, an official held out the possibility of explosives that were used to make holes in the containers might have detonated small explosives inside.