CIA explosives training material left on Virginia school bus
LOUDON COUNTY, Va. --Inert explosives training material was found Wednesday on a Virginia school bus a week after the CIA used it in a police dog exercise, officials said.
The material was found inside the engine compartment of a public school bus in a Virginia suburb of Washington during routine maintenance, according to Kraig Troxell, spokesman for Loudoun County.
The CIA conducted the training from March 21 to 24 at a school in Ashburn, Virginia, during spring break, Troxell said.
The bus was in service Monday and Tuesday, serving multiple schools in the county, CBS affiliate WUSA in Washington reported. Loudoun County school officials say they are working to contact the parents of students who may have ridden the bus while the material was on board.
According to a letter sent to parents in the school district, the bus was parked at Briar Woods High School during the training exercise, WUSA reported.
The CIA said in a statement that the material was inadvertently left by the agency's K-9 unit and it did not pose a danger to passengers. The training materials used in the exercises are "incredibly stable," the agency said.
The training is conducted with other local public safety and federal agencies in the region throughout the year, Troxell said.
The Loudoun County Sheriff's Office and the Loudoun County Fire Marshal's Office said that this particular training program has been suspended until a thorough review of all procedures is completed.