NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. — A couple visiting from Kitchener, Ontario witnessed the vehicle explosion at the Rainbow Bridge In Niagara Falls on Wednesday.
Mike Guenther said he and his wife were walking near the bridge when they saw a speeding vehicle coming toward the border, swerve, then hit a fence before "flying up in the air." Guenther said the vehicle was a fireball and that there was smoke everywhere.
"It was all a fire like 30-40 feet high," Guenther said. "I've never seen anything like it."
As the incident unfolded, Niagara Falls tour guide Rickie Wilson compared initially thought it was a small plane.
"I first thought it was an airplane in slow motion," Wilson said. "And I said, My God, it's a car, and it's a vehicle and it's flying through the air.
Witnesses told 2 On Your Side the fire burned for several minutes before the Niagara Falls Fire Department arrived on scene.
"There was so much smoke," Wilson said. "It was unbelievable."
The FBI on Wednesday night said its investigation yielded no explosive materials, "and no terrorism nexus was identified. The matter has been turned over to the Niagara Falls Police Department as a traffic investigation."
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul released this statement Wednesday afternoon about the incident:
“I have been briefed on the situation that occurred at the Rainbow Bridge in Buffalo. At my direction, the New York State Police is actively working with the FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force to monitor all points of entry to New York. I am traveling to Buffalo to meet with law enforcement and emergency responders and will update New Yorkers when more information becomes available.”
The news of this crash caused national attention, mainly because it forced the closure of four border crossings on Thanksgiving eve, while the details were sorted out.