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File photo of a remote-controlled device used by the army bomb disposal unit. Mark Stedman/Photocall Ireland
Bomb Squad
Bomb disposal team deals with unstable chemical at Wicklow school
Dinitrophenylhydrazine, a routine agent which can become unstable over time, was found during a routine audit.
AN ARMY BOMB DISPOSAL unit was deployed to a school in Wicklow town earlier today to deal with a dangerous chemical which had been discovered there.
The unit was deployed to Glendalough East Secondary School following a request from local Gardaí.
A routine audit of the school’s laboratory store had led to the discovery of an unspecified amount of the chemical reagent, dinitrophenylhydrazine.
That substance is a ‘shock explosive’ and becomes more unstable over time, leading to the possibility that the substance can detonate if ‘shocked’ or dropped.
The bomb squad arrived on the scene at 4:20pm and removed the substance to a waste ground where a controlled explosion was carried out to make the chemical safe.
The scene was declared safe at 5:40pm.
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