Police close off several blocks of downtown Brevard Sunday after a report of suspected explosives

A church was evacuated, but nobody was injured and none of the "suspected small incendiary devices” detonated, according to the Brevard Police Department

By Dan DeWitt

After a resident reported seeing what looked like explosive devices near East Morgan and Gaston streets Sunday morning, Brevard Police evacuated First Baptist Church of Brevard and closed down several blocks to vehicle and pedestrian traffic.

When police officers arrived about 10:30 a.m., they found several of the devices, according to a press release.

Though the suspected explosives were found near Transylvania County offices, none of the information gathered by police so far indicates these buildings were targets, said Tom Jordan, the department’s executive chief.

“Until we find out who the person was, it's hard to determine what their motivations were or who specifically was targeted.”

Other than describing the devices as “small,” the department did not provide details about them or say how destructive they could have been if detonated.

But, Jordan said, the incident “is a threat to everybody and we take it very seriously. . . We’re going to investigate.”

The department has asked the Transylvania County Sheriff’s Office and state and federal agencies, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation, to help with the inquiry.

Besides ordering the evacuation of the church, which was in session when police arrived, several employees of the Transylvania Public Library were at work Sunday morning and told to leave the area.

“When the devices were found, Transylvania County did notify the employees that it was not a good day to work and told them to go home,” Jordan said.

Though fire trucks and squad cars blocked access off East Main Street and South Broad Street late Sunday, Jordan said he expected the area to be reopened by Monday morning.