A vehicle has exploded at the Rainbow Bridge, which connects the U.S. and Canada at Niagara Falls, with reports suggesting that the two occupants of the car died in the blast.
Federal authorities on Wednesday scrambled to determine the cause of an explosion at Rainbow Bridge, which connects the United States and Canada at Niagara Falls, involving a vehicle crossing into the U.S.
The explosion happened on the U.S. side of the bridge when the car crashed into the checkpoint structure. Kathy Hochul, the New York Governor, said she is traveling to the site and the FBI has been dispatched to the scene as well as K-9 officers, who are stationed on either side of the international bridges as a precautionary measure.
The car’s two occupants were discovered dead, local authorities told CNN. The explosion injured a Border Patrol officer as well, The New York Times reported. Authorities have yet to announce any suspected cause of the explosion.
No explosive devices were found in the wreckage of the vehicle, law enforcement sources told NBC News.
President Joe Biden was briefed on the explosion and is monitoring the incident, per a White House pool report. Biden is in Nantucket ahead of Thanksgiving celebrations with family.
Rainbow Bridge and three other border crossings were closed. The Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority said in a statement that “The Buffalo and Niagara Falls Airports are fully operational,” and that travelers may face additional screenings.
The New York State Police is working with the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force to surveil the entrances into New York at Hochul’s direction, she said in a statement.
“I have been briefed on the situation that occurred at the Rainbow Bridge in Buffalo,” Hochul said in a statement. “I am traveling to Buffalo to meet with law enforcement and emergency responders and will update New Yorkers when more information becomes available.”
