Two suspicious objects resembling a pipe bomb and TNT were found in a bag on a roadside in Trat’s Khao Saming district on Tuesday morning, but turned out to be a hoax.
Explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) officers were rushed to tambon Saentung to examine two objects found in a blue bag left on the side of Sukhumvit Road, said Pol Lt Thanaphum Newanit, a duty officer at Khao Saming police station, who received the report about 9am.
Part of Sukhumvit Road was closed to traffic while the team examined the bag and its contents.
The two objects were separately wrapped in black plastic tape, but were found to be a water pump coil and a kettle stuffed with gunpowder, said Pol Sub Lt Cherdphan Boonlom, head of the EOD team.
Pol Col Chamlong Bamrungsil, superintendent of Khao Saming police station, said a scavenger found the bag and reported it to police.
He said he had ordered a hunt for those responsible for the hoax.
Since the fatal Erawan Shrine blast in Bangkok on Aug 17, several fake bombs have been found in Bangkok and other provinces, causing panic in some cases.
The deadly bomb blast at Ratchaprasong intersection killed 20 people and injured scores more. Most of the victims were foreign tourists.