MAWSS won't say when bomb threat was found at Big Creek Lake dam, source says March 2nd

Mobile's drinking water supply was the target of what officials are calling an unprecedented threat — and serious questions remain about how long authorities knew before the public did.

Mobile Area Water and Sewer System announced this week that divers discovered a grenade-type improvised explosive device underwater at the Big Creek Lake dam — also known as the J.B. Converse Reservoir — and safely detonated it on May 13th. The response involved the Mobile County Sheriff's Office, the FBI Bomb Squad, Mobile Police, the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency bomb squad, and the Daphne Search and Rescue Team. The Department of Homeland Security was subsequently briefed. The story aired nationally on CNN, Fox News, and News Nation, and was picked up by papers in the country's largest media markets.

But here's what MAWSS isn't saying: when the device was actually found.

According to NBC15, a law enforcement source says the device was discovered on March 2nd — more than 10 weeks before it was detonated. FM Talk's own Sean Sullivan broke that news Friday when he independently confirmed on-air that MAWSS officials were aware of the device as of that date. MAWSS has not disputed the March 2nd timeline, but has also refused to confirm it.

That gap matters. Big Creek Lake reopened to the public on April 23rd — more than seven weeks after the device was allegedly discovered, and nearly three weeks before it was removed. MAWSS has not explained why the lake was reopened during that window.

As Lagniappe Mobile reported, MAWSS has gone effectively silent since the story broke nationally. The utility declined to say how large the device was, whether its explosive capability had been analyzed, whether it could be consistent with law enforcement training equipment, or whether anyone is still investigating. Mobile Police referred questions back to MAWSS. The Sheriff's Office referred questions back to MAWSS. MAWSS Director Bud McCrory has declined interview requests from NBC15 entirely.

When Lagniappe asked whether the incident is still an open investigation and which agency is leading it — no answer.

Worth noting for context: the Metro Firearms Training Facility used by Mobile Police, the Sheriff's Office, and federal agencies sits roughly a half-mile from the spillway where the device was found. Tanner Williams Road also runs public traffic directly across the dam near that same location. MAWSS has spent the past year aggressively positioning the reservoir as federally designated critical infrastructure — filing criminal charges against a kayaker last year, closing the lake to recreation in February citing invasive species, and suing the state over control of the lake's surface waters. That lawsuit ended in a settlement giving MAWSS a 99-year lease — and a recreational facility at the lake opened just last month.

MAWSS provides drinking water to hundreds of thousands of residents across Mobile and Baldwin counties. So far, the utility is offering no timeline, no answers, and no interviews.

Changed routes, altered times, alternative vehicles: Inside Mobile’s proposed transit plan

By Brendan Kirby

MOBILE, Ala. (WALA) - Wave Transit is going to become Second Line Transit this summer, but it’s much more than just a name change.

Mobile’s bus service is undergoing big changes. Some routes will be different, and some hours will change. More people will ride in smaller vehicles instead of buses.

On Friday, service provider Via Transportation explained the changes at the last of its information sessions this week to get feedback from the public. Not all of that feedback was positive.

Read More : Changed routes, altered times, alternative vehicles: Inside Mobile’s proposed transit plan