Police: Probe into fiery crash at U.S.-Canada border may take 'some time'

Nov. 23 (UPI) -- New York authorities investigating an incident in which a car went airborne, crashed and exploded at a U.S.-Canada border crossing said Thursday it may take "some time" to determine all the facts in the bizarre case.

Two people inside the vehicle died in the crash at the Rainbow Bridge in Niagara Falls, N.Y., early Wednesday, one of the busiest U.S.-Canadian crossings spanning the two nations.

A U.S. Customs and Border Protection agent sustained minor injuries in what now appears to be a violent traffic accident.

Security camera video of the incident posted by the CPB shows a car sailing through the air a high rate of speed after apparently vaulting over a concrete barrier before disappearing from the frame.

After the FBI ruled out terrorism as a possible cause late Wednesday, the probe was handed over to the Niagara Falls. N.Y., Police Department as a traffic incident.

Department spokesman John Faso said Thursday the two occupants of the vehicle have not yet positively identified and warned the investigation into what caused the fiery crash is likely to be drawn out.

"We have not made positive identification nor notification yet." he said in a statement issued to media outlets, adding, "this is obviously a very, very complex situation. Our crash management unit has been working since late yesterday afternoon and they're still working on it, and it's going to take quite some time."

Jim Diodati, mayor of Niagara Falls, Ontario, on the Canadian side of the Rainbow Bridge, told the CBC on Thursday he expected the span to reopen for traffic cross-border traffic shortly.

He cited mistaken initial reports the incident was terror-related in causing fear among border-area residents.

"We were on a real emotional roller-coaster all day as details were coming in and they were not all accurate, especially for border towns where there's family and friends on both sides of the border," he said. "People live on one side and work on the other ... we just thought, you gotta be kidding."

While not officially identified, several media reports have indicated the two occupants of the vehicle were a married couple who were heading to Toronto to see a concert by the rock band KISS but, when the show was canceled, instead stopped at the Seneca Niagara Resort & Casino.

The crash was so violent that only the engine of the car was left, New York Gov. Kathy Hochel said Wednesday, adding that one of the people in the vehicle was a resident of western New York.