Peoria Evacuation Lifted After Bomb Search Finds No More Devices at Ethanol Plant

The Peoria evacuation lifted at about 1 p.m. on Saturday, November 14, 2026, and more than 5,000 people forced from their homes in Peoria, Illinois, can finally go back. Police ended the one-mile evacuation around the BioUrja Renewables ethanol plant after investigators finished searching the facility and found no additional devices.

The all-clear ended about 24 hours of fear that began when a bomb threat and a suspicious device shut down part of the city on Friday, closed a stretch of Interstate 74 and sent families into an emergency shelter for the night. No one was hurt, no arrests have been made, and the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are still hunting for whoever is responsible.

Key Points

• Peoria police lifted the one-mile evacuation around the BioUrja Renewables ethanol plant at about 1 p.m. CT on Saturday, November 14, 2026.
• Investigators searched the plant, about the size of 44.5 football fields, and found no additional devices or anything of concern.
• More than 5,000 residents and workers from downtown Peoria and East Peoria were forced out for about 24 hours; about 75 people spent the night at a shelter.
• The device found on Friday was rendered safe by bomb technicians at about 9:15 p.m., but the evacuation stayed in place until the full search was done.
• No arrests have been made and no injuries were reported; the FBI and ATF are continuing an extensive criminal investigation.

What Happened

The evacuation order was cancelled on Saturday afternoon, a day after it was imposed. Peoria Police Chief Brad Dixon told reporters that the one-mile blast radius around the plant was no longer in effect and that crews were removing the barricades that had closed streets across downtown Peoria and East Peoria.

The search itself was a huge job. The BioUrja facility at 1 Edmund Street covers a vast industrial site, and bomb technicians and investigators worked through the night and into Saturday to clear it area by area. Dixon said the search was complete and that officers found no other devices and nothing else that raised concern. Interstate 74 reopened after being shut in both directions through Peoria during the emergency.

Background: How the Scare Unfolded

The scare began on Friday, November 13, 2026, when BioUrja notified police of a bomb threat at 1:08 p.m. CT. A suspicious package had arrived at the plant at about 2 p.m., and an emailed threat warned that devices would "blow in 12 hours, good luck finding them all." By about 6:45 p.m., police had deemed the threat credible and ordered the one-mile evacuation covering parts of Peoria and East Peoria across the Illinois River.

Mayor Rita Ali confirmed late Friday that a device had been identified, saying: "A device has been identified. We know it's a credible threat. We know it's a bomb." She added: "We don't know if there are other devices." Bomb technicians rendered the device safe at about 9:12 to 9:15 p.m. on Friday, but with that question unanswered, nobody was allowed back. The FBI's Springfield office and ATF explosives specialists joined Peoria police at the scene.

Peoria Evacuation Lifted: What Police Found

The key question all weekend was whether there was a second device, and on Saturday the answer came back clear. Dixon said investigators had finished searching the entire facility and found no additional devices or anything of concern. He was careful with his words about the device itself, saying he would not call it a bomb because work to determine its exact composition was still ongoing.

The size of the search explains why it took a full day. At about 44.5 football fields, the BioUrja plant is one of the largest industrial sites in the city, and every part of it had to be checked before police could be sure. The methodical pace frustrated some residents who wanted to go home sooner, but officials said they would not cut the search short while the emailed threat still suggested more than one device could be hidden.

Reactions and Quotes

Chief Dixon's announcement brought relief to a city that had spent a nervous night. His message was simple: the search was done, nothing else was found and people could go home. The decision to lift the order at about 1 p.m. came after the final areas of the plant had been cleared, and barricades began coming down almost immediately.

Mayor Ali's words from Friday night captured the seriousness of the threat. "A device has been identified. We know it's a credible threat. We know it's a bomb," she said, adding: "We don't know if there are other devices." That uncertainty drove the wide evacuation and the long search.

Why It Matters

The Peoria incident shows how a single emailed threat can paralyse a mid-sized American city. One message and one suspicious package closed a major interstate, emptied homes and workplaces across a one-mile radius, and kept thousands of people away for a full day. The cost in disruption alone was large, even though nobody was hurt and the device was made safe within hours.

It also shows the scale of the response that modern bomb threats demand. Clearing a plant the size of 44.5 football fields took federal agents, state police and local bomb technicians working through the night, and the evacuation could not end until every part of the site had been checked.

What Happens Next

The FBI's Springfield office and the ATF's Chicago Field Division are continuing what Dixon described as an extensive criminal investigation. Their work will focus on identifying whoever sent the emailed threat and delivered the device, and on determining the device's composition, which Dixon said was still being examined. No arrests have been announced, and police have not said whether they have any suspects.

Residents are back home and the plant is expected to return to normal operations, though BioUrja has not said when full production will resume.

Read our original report on how the threat unfolded on Friday: Bomb Found at Peoria Ethanol Plant Forces One-Mile Evacuation in Illinois. For more on recent crime stories, see our coverage of the University of Michigan campus incident and the Virginia Beach Amazon shooting investigation.

Frequently Asked Questions

When was the Peoria evacuation lifted?
At about 1 p.m. CT on Saturday, November 14, 2026, after the full search of the BioUrja plant was completed.

Did police find any more devices at the BioUrja plant?
No. Investigators searched the plant, about the size of 44.5 football fields, and found no additional devices or anything of concern.

How many people were evacuated in Peoria?
More than 5,000 residents and workers from downtown Peoria and East Peoria were forced to leave for about 24 hours. About 75 people spent Friday night at a shelter at Manual Academy.

Was anyone hurt or arrested?
No injuries were reported, and no arrests have been made. The FBI and ATF are continuing an extensive criminal investigation.

Why was the evacuation zone one mile wide?
Police set the one-mile radius because of the materials surrounding the device inside the ethanol plant, where a blast could have caused far greater damage than at an ordinary building.