An explosion rocked a residential neighborhood near the Jersey Shore overnight, and police are investigating what caused the blast.
Authorities in Barnegat Township, Ocean County said police received numerous reports of an explosion in the area of Village drive in Barnegat just after 1:30 a.m. Wednesday. When officers arrived, they found what was left of a rubber trash can smoking by the curb between 81 Village Drive and 82 Windward Drive, according to the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office.
The prosecutor's office said the debris field from the blast stretched about 10 yards from the trash can, and there were no injuries or properties damaged as a result of the blast. It's unclear exactly what caused it, and investigators don't yet know what explosive material was used.
A spokesman from the prosecutor's office said police believe based on the time and location of the blast that it was likely more of a nuisance and not meant to cause harm to anyone. The explosion came as the man accused of planting a bomb in a trash can in Seaside Park and a pressure cooker bomb in New York City on Sept. 17 is scheduled to be arraigned.
Detectives, the New Jersey State Police Bomb Unit, the ATF and other agencies are investigating.
