Two packages sent to two Maryland state agencies exploded on Thursday, emitting small flames and the smell of sulfur when opened. One package addressed to Gov. Martin O’Malley ignited at 12:25 p.m. in the downtown Annapolis building that houses several executive offices including the Secretary of State, the Governor’s Department of Homeland Security and the state Department of Veterans Affairs, according to police.
Twenty minutes later, the other package exploded 25 miles away at the Maryland Department of Transportation headquarters in Hanover. Both buildings were immediately evacuated, and O’Malley ordered all state agencies to shutter their mailrooms and refrain from opening any mail.
The employees who opened the packages said their fingers were slightly burned, but no other injuries were reported, Shipley said.
No information has been released on the source of the packages.
Police also investigated similar packages sent to the Baltimore Circuit Court and a nearby state office, but determined the shipments contained only printer toner and laptop batteries.
FBI officials found no explosive materials in the ignited devices, which were shipped through the U.S. Postal Service and stamped “with U.S. holiday stamps,” according to Maryland State Police spokesman Greg Shipley. The packages, which resembled a shipment of books, were sent to an FBI lab for further analysis.
“When both packages were opened there was a reaction that caused a flash of fire, a brief flash of fire, smoke and a smell,” Shipley said. “This is not to be compared with a significant explosion … and I want to stress that.”
The Annapolis package was still largely intact following detonation, based on pictures provided by police.
A suspicious item also was under investigation at Washington Dulles International Airport on Thursday evening, prompting authorities to close half of the main terminal. Police have not indicated that the investigation at Dulles has any relation to the Maryland packages. The airport remains open and flights are operating.
