Just after midnight in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, a driver in a pickup truck heading the wrong way off the westbound Kenosha exit ramp on Highway 51 drew the attention of local police. Officers pulled the vehicle over, expecting an otherwise “regular” traffic violation. Instead, the stop escalated into a potential public safety threat.

During a vehicle search on May 23, officers discovered what appeared to be a homemade explosive: a PVC pipe sealed with end caps and fitted with a fuse.

They called in the Tulsa Police Department Bomb Squad, which confirmed the object was an active improvised explosive device (IED)

The device was safely detonated at the scene, the Broken Arrow Police Department shared in a Facebook post.

Police arrested the driver, who had an outstanding felony warrant and was also found with drug paraphernalia. A female passenger in the car was also taken into custody for paraphernalia possession. Additional charges related to the explosive device are pending. Authorities said there’s no ongoing threat to the public.

While incidents like this are considered “uncommon” in most localities, they’re part of a documented trend.

According to the ATF, law enforcement agencies across the U.S. reported more than 1,600 explosive-related incidents in 2022

Of those, roughly 300 involved homemade devices. The ATF’s Hazardous Devices School, which trains public safety bomb technicians, has seen increased demand in recent years due to these emerging threats.

The Broken Arrow incident didn’t result in injuries or property damage. However, it underscores how unpredictable these roadside encounters can be. Traffic stops are among the most common points of contact between police and the public.

In 2020, the Bureau of Justice Statistics estimated that 24 million people in the U.S. were pulled over in traffic stops. That’s a lot of interactions…some 50,000 a day. At that number, police officers never really know what they’ll see when they approach a car during a “routine” stop.