It’s a banana – not a bomb!

Ah… When geocaching hits the news for less than savory reasons. This time, at least it’s funny!

Suspicious banana in tree not a bomb

Lincoln fire investigators have cracked the case of the suspicious banana found hanging Tuesday from a pine tree in northeast Lincoln.

The banana-appearing device, wrapped in yellow tape and attached to a wire, caught the eye of a Lincoln Electric System worker in the area of 84th Street and Leighton Avenue, Lincoln Fire and Rescue Capt. Lloyd Mueller said.

So the man called 911 to report the suspicious banana and police and fire crews, along with a bomb technician, responded.

When Mueller’s company arrived, they waited at least 100 feet away and watched the device through binoculars as they waited for the bomb technician to arrive, Lincoln Fire Investigator Chuck Schweitzer said.

Schweitzer and the crews — with an assist from listeners to the police scanner — determined the banana wasn’t a bomb.

Instead, it was part of a modern scavenger hunt, called geocaching, where enthusiasts try to find hidden objects using GPS. There are millions of geocaches hidden around the world, according to geocaching.com.

City bomb technicians have been out on similar calls through the years as geocaching has grown in popularity, Schweitzer said.

“They see things that they just think might not be quite right and they do call them in,” Schweitzer said, exactly as they’re supposed to.

Around 2:30 p.m. a voice alerted dispatchers: Schweitzer has custody of the banana.