A elderly Santa Rosa woman is in the hospital with injuries to her face after a suspicious soda can exploded on her, police said.
The woman walking along a dam in a Santa Rosa park Thursday morning when she picked up a plastic soda container and it exploded in her face, police said.
Police said Collin Schultz, 68, of Santa Rosa, was walking along a dam with her husband, near Lake Ralphine at Howarth Park, when she spotted the soda container.
She picked it up and it exploded, causing injuries to her face and hands.
"Plastic soda containers are frequently used to make dry ice or acid bombs," Sgt. Lisa Bayanat said in a statement. "These bombs are unstable and can detonate any time after they are made. The container lid can act as a projectile, causing injury when the container explodes. Any plastic container that is obviously bulging or distended should be left in place."
Schultz often picks up soda cans in the park with her husband to keep the park clean, police said.
Police were notified of the explosion at 9:37 a.m.
Schultz was taken to a hospital by ambulance. Her wounds are not considered life-threatening, police said.
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The area near the dam was shut down after the explosion while police and the Sonoma County Sheriff's Department bomb squad investigated.
They located a second "suspicious" item in the area and detonated it, police said.
The dam area was reopened at 11:15 a.m.
