Winnipeg police dispose of ‘highly volatile’ chemical found at research centre

Those at St. Boniface Hospital’s research centre had a scare this morning, as police were called in to dispose of a volatile chemical.

“During a routine laboratory decommissioning in the Albrechtsen Research Centre, a container was found that required further investigation during an inventory of chemical products found within that lab,” said and emailed statement from the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority.

“It appears upon initial investigation that the product may have been in the lab for some time and had degraded over time into a form that is considered highly volatile,” it said.

WRHA says the substance was for legitimate research and was on site for that purpose.

The bomb unit was brought in just before 11 a.m., police said, and the Research Centre was evacuated as a precaution.

St. Boniface Hospital said, “We can advise this is not any kind of bomb threat, intruder or any other such acute incident.”

Police say they removed and disposed of a small amount of the chemical.

MRI services were suspended until 7 p.m., but the rest of hospital operations continued normally.

Police said the process went smoothly, and no one was hurt.