Garfield homes evacuated as precaution when ‘railroad torpedoes’ found

The homeowner says he accidentally bought the explosives at a flea market on Sunday.

Matt Trapani

Nov 14, 2023, 1:19 AM

Updated 336 days ago

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Several homes in a Garfield neighborhood were evacuated Monday afternoon after some explosives were found inside one of the homes.
Garfield police say they found 14 railroad torpedoes in a home on Manner Avenue just before 1 p.m. Monday. The devices are small explosive noisemakers used by rail companies as alert devices. They were found inside a flare box.
Police say the homeowner bought the box at a flea market in Burlington County on Sunday. He called the police when he realized what was in the box.
Several nearby homes were evacuated as a precaution while the Bergen County Sheriff’s Office Bomb Squad secured the items.