Metro Transit officer hurt in blast preparing for training

Firefighters respond to an explosion at a bus garage in St. Paul.
Firefighters respond to an explosion at a bus garage in St. Paul on Wednesday. Metro Transit says K-9 training gone wrong led to the accidental small explosion.
Evan Frost | MPR News

A Metro Transit police officer was hurt when an explosive device he was preparing for a training exercise went off.

The explosion happened Wednesday afternoon at a Metro Transit facility in St. Paul used for overhauling buses.

Metro Transit spokesperson Howie Padilla says the officer had an explosive that his police dog would search for. Padilla says the dog was still inside the squad car when the device exploded.

The 7-year veteran officer suffered non-life-threatening injuries. The St. Paul police bomb squad was called in as a precaution.

Neighboring businesses also were evacuated as a precaution. The explosion happened after bus employees had left for the day.

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