Rabbit Causes Bomb Scare at Australian Airport

Image: Dwarf rabbit. (photo via zocchi2 / iStock / Getty Images Plus)
Image: Dwarf rabbit. (photo via zocchi2 / iStock / Getty Images Plus)
Donald Wood
by Donald Wood
Last updated: 11:12 AM ET, Thu June 28, 2018

A rabbit left in a bag at an Australian airport caused a bomb scare Wednesday night.

According to ABC.net, the Australian Federal Police were forced to call the bomb squad to Adelaide Airport in South Australia after an abandoned bag was discovered in the women's bathroom.

The area was evacuated and officers entered the bathroom, only to find that the pink bag actually contained a male rabbit wearing a red harness. The officers did not find any form of identification on the animal.

Police alerted the RSPCA, who sent a representative to collect the rabbit and bring it back to the organization's headquarters. RSPCA said the animal was unharmed and is being kept in a warm cage with plenty of food and water.

"This is the first job of this kind that I've come across in my 26 years of service with the RSPCA," rescue officer Nalika Van Loenen told ABC.net. "He is even harness-trained. The police had put him in a large box and [got] some carrots from Subway, so he had some fresh shredded carrot to munch on while they waited for me to arrive."

Australian Federal Police acting state manager Commander Brett McCann said officers take all situations very seriously, but the group was shocked when they opened the bag only to find a rabbit inside.

Officials from the RSPCA are now trying to find any information on the person who left the one-year-old dwarf rabbit inside the Adelaide Airport and the reason behind abandoning the animal.


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