By Monty Siekerman
The bomb squad came to Ada War Memorial Park on Thursday afternoon during a free ReStore Community Center lunch for children. The 40 kids at the park enjoyed seeing how robots work and how they can help protect police and catch the bad guys.

Members of the Allen County Regional Bomb Squad had two observation platforms on hand. One was a helmet, the other a robot. Also, clothing to help ward off injury from a detonated bomb was shown to the youngsters.

The squad is manned by members of various police agencies and fire departments in the 13 counties in the region that the squad serves. Members are trained by the FBI. Training is updated regularly.

One might think that bomb squads are relatively new since there seems to be daily news about the damage done by bombs throughout the world.

However, the squad serving this area was formed by the Lima Police Department in 1971. Today, the squad's equipment is much more sophisticated and its reach is greater.

The squad, and a bomb-sniffing dog, were called to Ada Schools after a phoned-in threat on Feb. 24. The buildings were emptied of people. No bomb was found; classes resumed the next morning.

PHOTO BELOW: Terry Maris and grandchildren Lauren Ludwig, 1, and Rett Ludwig, 3, look over a helmet used by a bomb squad member.