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1 year ago
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An astonishing new image shows the moment the $300k Bentley involved in the Niagara Falls checkpoint explosion soared through the air moments before combusting.
US police said on Thursday they were still investigating the fiery crash on the bridge linking New York state and Ontario the day before.
The dramatic fireball incident at 11.29am Wednesday sparked a security scare and the closure of four US-Canadian border crossings on the day before Thanksgiving.
A new image which emerged on X, formerly known as Twitter, shows the luxury motor twisting sideways as it hurtled through the air at break-neck speed.
It was being driven by a 56-year-old Manhattan businessman with his wife in the passenger seat on their way to a KISS concert.
This astonishing new image shows the moment the $300k Bentley involved in the Niagara Falls checkpoint explosion soared through the air moments before combusting
The crash set off a wave of panic and led to the closure of several border crossings
Footage shows the luxury sedan barreling across a median which throws it high into the air before the explosive impact with the US Customs building at the Rainbow Bridge
US federal agencies including the FBI have now confirmed the incident was not a terrorist event. The Niagara Falls PD Crash Management Unit has take on the probe.
'Due to the complexity of the incident, the investigation will take some time to complete,' the department's Superintendent John Faso said in a statement.
'At this time the identity of those involved is pending positive identification and notification to next of kin.'
The Bentley, believed to be a Flying Spur, comes in both petrol and hybrid models, and it's unclear which one this was.
Video of the crash caught on security camera and previously posted to X by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency showed the car traveling from the U.S. side at high speed.
A Bentley Flying Spur, like the one being driven by the businessman and his wife on Wednesday
A Border Patrol agent approaches the crash site after the explosion on Wednesday
The immediate aftermath of the explosion on the US side of the Rainbow Bridge border crossing at Niagara Falls on Wednesday
It then hit an object and flew into the air before crashing to the ground and exploding in flames.
The driver and a passenger died. A CBP officer suffered minor injuries, and was treated at a hospital and released.
CNN reported the driver was a 56-year-old man traveling with his wife to attend a concert by the rock group KISS.
The crash unfolded at a time of heightened security concerns around the world stemming from the conflict in the Middle East and at the peak of U.S. holiday travel on the eve of Thanksgiving celebrations.
The Rainbow Bridge and all three other border crossings along the Niagara River between western New York and the Canadian province of Ontario - the Peace Bridge, the Lewiston-Queenston Bridge and the Whirlpool Bridge - were shut for several hours as a precaution.
CBP is working closely with @FBI, federal, state & local partners in response to a vehicle explosion at Rainbow Bridge which remains closed. Out of abundance of caution, CBP temporarily suspended inbound/outbound traffic at 3 other Buffalo crossings that have since reopened. pic.twitter.com/pTXyUsavRB
— CBP (@CBP) November 22, 2023Video taken from a building next to the checkpoint shows the enormous blast
The aftermath of the explosion at Rainbow Bridge border crossing at Niagara Falls on Wednesday
The three bridges that were not involved were reopened early Wednesday evening.
The Rainbow Bridge links the United States to the Canadian town of Niagara Falls.
Town mayor Jim Diodati told the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation he hoped the crossing would reopen Thursday or Friday.
English (US)