A tire on a hand-truck exploded and sparked a bomb scare in the lobby of a Manhattan apartment building Monday afternoon.
The dolly was being used to deliver packages in the Lexington Avenue building near East 27th Street when one of its rubber tires blew around 12:10 p.m., making a loud pop and causing panicked 911 callers to report a small, explosion, authorities said.
The NYPD Bomb Squad and FDNY rushed to the scene and soon discovered the culprit wheel.
“It was nothing more than the wheel on a green delivery hand-truck, and it exploded,” said one relieved resident who would only give her first name, Katherine.
“There were boxes piled up, and I guess the wheel caused friction. My heart started pounding. It was frightening. There were all kinds of police and emergency trucks.”