The Kenosha Hazardous Device team was called out to two incidents this week, both of which turned out to be unused airbags.
One was found in the Village of Somers, another in Pleasant Prairie. The Kenosha County Sheriff's Department said the airbags haven't hurt anybody, but could have.
"It just isn't a smart thing to do. Anything that would explode, it's a chemical reaction," said Sheriff David Beth. "A lot of us know people that had airbags go off in their vehicles and they've been injured from them."
Sheriff Beth believes the person or people responsible might have taped the airbag to a sign in Somers to shoot at it and see what would happen.
"I think somebody just has too much time on their hands, and probably some airbags from a junkyard," he said.
A neighbor down the street thought it was just a prank when she heard about the first airbag, but the second, found in a Mount Pleasant Industrial Park, made her think.
"That to me is kind of like sending up a red flag," said Grace Key.
While the risk of injury isn't great, Sheriff Beth hopes the people responsible will listen to his advice.
"There's better use of your time," he said. "If people really want to see what happens with a gun or to shoot things, go to a range."
The Sheriff said if you see something suspicious, to call them to check it out. He said the people responsible could face criminal damage to property and reckless endangerment, if someone gets hurt. They could also face charges under gun laws if a gun was involved.
