A report of a low-flying aircraft and a large explosion or boom followed by white smoke last night off Harvieland Road in Bald Knob led emergency responders to conduct an intense search of the area. This morning, the source of the boom remains a mystery. The first reports of a loud boom or explosion off O’Nan’s Bend in Bald Knob came in at about 40 minutes before sunset Saturday night, according to Franklin County Fire Chief Kevin Hutcherson.
Franklin County firefighters responded to the call and started a search of the area, Hutcherson said, but did not find anything. Another call came in from an off-duty city police officer who reported that the boom sounded like much more than just fireworks, Hutcherson said, so emergency responders stepped up the search effort to include a helicopter from the Lexington Police Department, the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office and Emergency Management. FULL REPORT
