Mail deliveries resume; another pipe bomb found

SEWARD, Neb. -- Another mailbox bomb was found in rural Nebraska on Monday, the eighth discovered in the state and the 16th in the Midwest since the domestic terrorism spree began last week.

Authorities also said a pipe bomb was found Monday in a mailbox in the small mountain community of Salida, Colo., 100 miles southwest of Denver.

A resident found the device in a sandwich bag with a piece of folded paper and alerted authorities.

FBI spokeswoman Ann Atanasio said the pipe bomb is similar to those found in three Midwest states, but investigators were doing more work to determine if it fit the pattern or was a copycat crime.

Authorities did not immediately release other details, including whether the paper was a note similar to the anti-government letter found with the other devices.

Pipe bombs wounded six people in Illinois and Iowa on Friday, while two other bombs found in Iowa did not explode. Over the weekend, seven bombs were found in Nebraska, but they were detonated harmlessly by authorities.

None of the wounded suffered life-threatening injuries.

Didn't explode

The latest Nebraska pipe bomb was found near Hastings in the mailbox of someone who had been away for the weekend, authorities said. It did not explode. There was no immediate word on it was accompanied by the same anti-government note found with the other devices.

"We have confirmed that an eighth bomb has been found, beyond that we don't have any information," Postal Service spokesman David Failor said.

There have been no arrests in the case.

The FBI said Monday that the first 15 bombs clearly come from the same source, but officials have not said whether they are searching for an individual or a group.

The latest bombs were found as hundreds of nervous letter carriers went back to work across the Midwest. Rural residents in at least four Midwest states and Colorado were asked to leave their mailboxes open or remove the mailbox door as a safety measure.

Jim Pelzer wore safety goggles and earplugs as he delivered mail in Tipton, Iowa, where one of the bombs exploded Friday. The protective gear was a gift from his wife.