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Man arrested after homemade explosives were detonated by bomb squad in South Austin house
By Luz Moreno-Lozano
April 17, 2025 at 1:15 PM CDT
A man is in jail after officers found and detonated a large amount of homemade explosives at a house in South Austin, the police department said.
Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis said police received a call around 3:13 p.m. Tuesday about the possibility of bomb material inside a home. The APD Bomb Squad and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives responded to the scene.
After investigating, Davis said officers decided the safest way to detonate the material was on-site. The material was destroyed on Wednesday around 5 p.m. Surrounding homes and streets were evacuated. No one was injured in the blast.
The home, which was destroyed by the explosion, is located in the 2400 block of Vintage Stave Road, which is just off Brodie Lane and Frate Barker Road.
Steven Aldrich, who lived in the home, was arrested and charged with felony possession of components of explosives. Additional charges are possible, police said.
Aldrich, 66, has previous explosives-related arrests in Williamson County, where he served six years in jail. He had two weeks left in his parole, Davis said.
Police are still investigating the incident and are not releasing any information about the exact amount and what kind of materials he was using.
“What his plan was — I cannot say,” Davis said. “But it was enough to destroy a home.”
The incident comes just days after a home in Northwest Austin exploded, injuring six people and damaging 24 homes. The cause of that explosion is under investigation, but officials said they do not expect a criminal investigation to come from that incident.
The two explosions are not related and there is no current threat to the public, police said.
Mayor Kirk Watson said he was pleased with the response to both incidents and said the safety of residents is a top priority.
“The reaction was appropriate, it was detonated in a way that was safe,” Watson said. “So we are working hard and we will continue to work hard to make sure that people are safe.”
Warning residents ahead of the detonation through the city's alert system was key in keeping people safe, officials said. The mayor encouraged residents to sign up for those alerts at WarnCentralTexas.org.
Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis said police received a call around 3:13 p.m. Tuesday about the possibility of bomb material inside a home. The APD Bomb Squad and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives responded to the scene.
After investigating, Davis said officers decided the safest way to detonate the material was on-site. The material was destroyed on Wednesday around 5 p.m. Surrounding homes and streets were evacuated. No one was injured in the blast.
The home, which was destroyed by the explosion, is located in the 2400 block of Vintage Stave Road, which is just off Brodie Lane and Frate Barker Road.
Steven Aldrich, who lived in the home, was arrested and charged with felony possession of components of explosives. Additional charges are possible, police said.
Aldrich, 66, has previous explosives-related arrests in Williamson County, where he served six years in jail. He had two weeks left in his parole, Davis said.
Police are still investigating the incident and are not releasing any information about the exact amount and what kind of materials he was using.
“What his plan was — I cannot say,” Davis said. “But it was enough to destroy a home.”
The incident comes just days after a home in Northwest Austin exploded, injuring six people and damaging 24 homes. The cause of that explosion is under investigation, but officials said they do not expect a criminal investigation to come from that incident.
The two explosions are not related and there is no current threat to the public, police said.
Mayor Kirk Watson said he was pleased with the response to both incidents and said the safety of residents is a top priority.
“The reaction was appropriate, it was detonated in a way that was safe,” Watson said. “So we are working hard and we will continue to work hard to make sure that people are safe.”
Warning residents ahead of the detonation through the city's alert system was key in keeping people safe, officials said. The mayor encouraged residents to sign up for those alerts at WarnCentralTexas.org.