MARINE CORPS AIR STATION IWAKUNI, Japan -- Military police and Explosive Ordnance Disposal personnel responded to a call that a “suspicious package” was left in the parking lot of the Station Telephone Office here Aug. 1.
At 9:15 a.m. a call was made to the Provost Marshal’s Office shortly after Toyokazu Hory spotted the suspicious package, a black back-pack which was later discovered to be filled with a station resident’s exercise clothes and various personal effects, sitting unattended in the parking lot in front of the building.
“Just before we opened I noticed the black back-pack left in front of our office,” said Hory, Telephone Office administrative specialist and Iwakuni native. “I immediately notified my supervisor that there was a suspicious package out front.”
Within 60 seconds of the call MPs were on scene cordoning off the area.
“We came out here and it did look pretty suspicious,” said 2nd Lt. Jay Wood, Station deputy provost marshal and Birmingham, Ala., native. “We cordoned off the area, got all the civilians out of the area and restricted traffic.”
After investigating the package as much as possible while remaining within the boundaries of safety, EOD personnel were unable to determine the nature of the package forcing them to destroy the black back-pack in place.
According to Gunnery Sgt. Michael Nutting, the fast responding MPs made the situation more manageable for the EOD techs.
“It was completely successful,” said Nutting, Station EOD officer-in-charge and native of West Palm Beach, Fla. “It ran quick and efficient.”
After the back-pack was destroyed, the contents were deemed harmless. Nonetheless, Wood was impressed with the actions taken by the MPs and EOD techs.
“Today this was harmless, but there was no way to safely figure that out without taking all the proper precautions, which is exactly what happened,” said Wood.
“I really feel that if this had been a real threat it would have gone just as smoothly thanks to the quick and professional response of the Marines. You never know, so you’ve always got to be ready,” added Wood.
While this was a harmless threat, the steps taken by Hory and the responding personnel were “exactly what should be done in a similar situation,” according to Wood.
Wood advises station personnel to always be watchful for “things that shouldn’t be in certain places, things left unattended and things that look out of place, like a black back-pack sitting in the middle of a Telephone Office parking lot.”
“You have to use your judgment; if it doesn’t look right it’s probably not right,” added Wood.
If a suspicious package is noticed, call the PMO desk sergeant at 253-3303.