Californian bomb factory so dangerous it must be burnt to the ground, authorities say
A San Diego house which was turned into a virtual bomb factory is so full of dangerous explosive materials it has to be burned down, authorities have said.
Residents in Escondido gasped in shock after county officials showed slides of the rental home of George Djura Jakubec which was packed full of hand grenades and powdered explosives in jars and on the floor.
Last week, explosive experts pulled out of the house, saying it was too dangerous to continue investigating and removing the substances.
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Dangerous: A mushroom cloud rises from the house in Escondido, California, after explosives experts detonated some of the materials at the site last week
Sheriff Bill Gore told around 300 residents gathered at a middle school: 'There is no viable method to render the property safe.
'It is also not habitable. The most effective way is to destroy the residence by fire.'
Mr Gore said the house would be destroyed on December 8, depending on the weather.
Protective barriers will have to be built around the house and much of the surrounding neighbourhood will be evacuated. Interstate 15 will also be shut down.
The country declared a public emergency yesterday to make the destruction possible.
Jakubec, a 54-year-old unemployed software consultant, pleaded not guilty last week to illegally making and possessing explosives and to robbing banks.
Investigators suspect him of committing two holdups in San Diego County over the summer. He remained in custody on $5.1million bail.
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Charges: George Djura Jakubec, 54, pleaded not guilty last week to making and possessing ******* explosives and robbing banks
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Hazardous: Residents have been told the house has to be destroyed and they will again be evacuated
Authorities said it was unclear what Jakubec had planned to do with the materials.
The explosives were discovered after a gardener was injured earlier this month in a blast that occurred when he stepped on explosive powder in the back yard.
Mario Garcia, 49, suffered eye, chest and arm injuries and is said to be recovering in hospital.
The same types of chemicals have been used by suicide bombers and insurgents in Iraq and Afghanistan.
They included Pentaerythritol tetranitrate, or PETN, which was used in the 2001 airliner shoe-bombing attempt as well as in last month's cargo bomb plot, authorities said.
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Recovering: Gardener Mario Garcia, 49, suffered eye, chest and arm injuries after stepping on powdered explosives at the property
The other chemicals were the highly unstable Hexamethylene triperoxide diamine, or HMTD, and Erythritol tetranitrate, or ETN.
Neighbours expressed fears that the fire could spread to nearby properties.
Alan Haghighi, 24, said after the meeting: 'I think they are looking out for our best interest.
'My primary concern is the consideration of life, and making sure no one gets hurt again.
'Unfortunately, they're willing to trade that off for my house burning to the ground.'
He added: 'My biggest fear is that my livelihood will be taken from me.'
Authorities reassured him that the chances of the fire spreading were slim.
Fire chief Todd Newman said: 'The chemical effects of the fire will be neutralised very fast.'
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