Bomb scare causes Thika traders to scamper for safety.

(Left) The gadget that caused a scare in Thika on suspicion that it was an explosive. Abel Githinji, the owner of the gadget talking to the press after being interrogated by the police.

There was a bomb scare in one of Thika town’s busiest streets earlier Tuesday morning after a trader found a “suspicious package” she believed to be an explosive dumped inside her shop.

Immediately after being notified, a contingent of officers drawn from both the regular and administration police condoned off the area and cleared off the occupants of the shop “Morning Traders” along Uhuru Street to avoid any fatal incident.

According to the owner, she bumped into an object wrapped in a sack inside her shop as she was carrying out her normal chores and upon opening it, she found suspicious object with wires well connected, something that raised her suspicion that it might be dangerous.

She called her lady assistant who immediately alerted police officers manning nearby banking institution who then called their bosses for action.

Led by Thika West DAPC Peter Nzimbi and Thika OCS Mathew Masaga, a multi-agency security team immediately swung into action and put the street on lock down even as they struggled to control a crowd which had milled around the area.

After a while, the police established it was a domestic electric power supply left behind by one of the employees who had carried it with intent to take to an electrician for repair but not before picking him up for interrogation.

Nzimbi later assured the residents that the object was not an explosive.

“It is an electric power supply that I was taking to the fundi for repair. Nothing to be scared about. But we thank the members of public for their quick response and urge them to always notify us whenever they spot any suspicious objects,” said Nzimbi.

Otherwise, Abel Githinji, the guy that had left the gadget at the shop apologised to ‘mama’ for not notifying her of his luggage before leaving it at the shop.

“Let me admit that I erred for not telling her that I had left this power supply here and I apologise for that. I was taking it to the fundi but by the time we open shop he had not yet opened his workshop. So, I decided to leave it here to take it to him during lunch break,” said Githinji.

Panic engulfed the upper part Uhuru Street and the neighbouring shops following reports that a bomb had been sighted in their vicinity.

The incident attracted large crowds who gathered on pavements and along Uhuru Street to witness the police detonate the ‘bomb’.