Rural Metro Fire addresses reports of explosions in Josephine County

JOSEPHINE COUNTY, Ore. – Local firefighters are addressing reports of several recent explosions reverberating across Josephine County.

Rural Metro Fire posted the following on their Facebook page Monday night:

“Did anyone else just hear that big boom?”

As a matter of fact, random explosive-type sounds have been heard across the entire county a lot recently. While most reports only manifest as social media chatter, some actually make their way into a 911 call, summoning a response from local firefighters and/or law enforcement. In most cases, the complaints are unfounded or result in no fire or injury. We don’t claim to know what causes all of these loud booms, but here is a courtesy explanation on a few theories.

Explosive Targets: A very popular and legal binary explosive that is shot with a rifle. A well-known brand is Tannerite. Sometimes used at gender-reveal parties. The larger amount mixed, the louder the explosion.

Fireworks: A common culprit is the aerial mortar. ODF takes an active role with enforcement during fire season, but locating the source of the launch site is difficult.

Transformer Explosion: In a case of mistaken identity, what is often reported as a transformer explosion is typically the fuse on a power pole after a surge or fault has caused it to pop. Such booms are generally followed by a power outage in the area of the sound.

First responders sympathize with those who have pets or PTSD trying to cope with the loud booms. We’re just glad that compared to the number of explosions heard, few if any result in fires or injuries.

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