A powdery substance found onboard a CTA train car at the Addison Red Line station this morning was not harmful, authorities have determined, but the police investigation of the incident continues tonight.
Red line @Cta train evacuated at Addison and #Addison station shut down after woman reportedly saw a man w/ white substance @cbschicago pic.twitter.com/ihItfZm5uB
— Susanna Song (@ohsusannasong) September 28, 2017
The affected car has been taken out of service—isolated at the Howard Street train yard—where the police department’s bomb and arson unit was processing the scene.
A police spokesman this afternoon told us that an unknown man in his 20’s was seen pouring a white powdery substance onto the floor of the train and he fled at the Addison station when other passengers started calling the police.
A source said the suspect has been described as a light-complected black man in his 20’s with freckles on his face. He was wearing a beige canvas hat, a red Bulls jersey, and knee-length shorts.
Police said the substance was “non-hazardous” and no injuries were reported. The suspect remains at large.
The powder was found in the fourth car of a southbound train around 8:30 this morning, forcing other trains to bypass the bustling station. Buses were used to shuttle stranded CTA commuters. Normal service resumed after 11 a.m.
