Possible pipe bomb found in front yard

CHESAPEAKE, Va. (WAVY) - Firefighters found a possible pipe bomb in a Chesapeake front yard Sunday morning.

They made the discovery around 10 a.m. in the 3400 block of St Clair Drive, in the Western Branch section of the city.

Crews arrived to find a tube with a fuse coming out the top of it, that appeared to be an active explosive device.

Forty  people in the neighborhood had to evacuate their homes, while the Virginia State Police Bomb Squad rendered the device safe. Witnesses say the bomb squad detonated the possible bomb.

"They kept hollering, 'Fire in the hole. Fire in the hole.' One guy put on this juggernaut bomb suit and then went over there," said Willie Snead, a resident near Saint Clair Drive. "Then he came back, and said, 'Fire in the hole, Fire in the hole.' And, it ignited like boom. Then it was all over," said Snead.

The area has since been cleared. Residents had to wait for about two hours before they were allowed to return home. Chesapeake fire marshals are investigating the incident.