Bomb squad shuts highway near Belgian border on suspicious fire

Update, 3:00 p.m., 16 November 2015: The highway was reopened and a second person was arrested. The article content was changed to reflect the developments. The A2 highway at Susteren in Limburg was closed down in both directions due to a police investigation into a fire in a barn on Baakhoven and a nearby abandoned car. Two people were arrested, the prosecutor's office confirmed to multiple media outlets. Investigators made one of the suspects take off his clothes during the arrest. Police did not disclose the nature of the arrests at the time of publication. The Explosive Ordnance Disposal team was at the scene by 2:00 p.m. to investigate the barn with a robot, after also examining a seemingly-abandoned car in a nearby pasture. Traffic on the A2 was eventually reopened about 45 minutes later. A fire in a barn brought emergency responders out to the scene in the early afternoon, with the first reports called in at about 12:40 p.m. Local residents said they heard pops and bangs from the barn, according to newswire ANP. The fire department escalated the situation to Grip 1 at the scene. A Grip 1 regional incident calls for emergency services to establish a coordinated chain of command, and active communication with the local mayor's office, regional fire department command, district police chief and the public health director. The highway closure caused 11 kilometers of traffic to pile up on the A2 by 2:15 p.m., and another five kilometers on the A73, according to traveler's association ANWB. Detour routes along the N276 and N297 were also jammed.