New Police Robot Put into Action in Honolulu

HONOLULU (AP) - A new Honolulu police robot was put into action Friday.

The $100,000 robot, called the Mini-Andros, was used to retrieve a suspicious pipe that forced the closure of the H-1 freeway. The pipe turned out to be a container of drill bits that apparently fell off a vehicle, police said.

Traffic in both directions of the freeway near the Middle Street overpass was halted for nearly half an hour while police worked to remove what appeared to be a pipe bomb in the eastbound lanes. All lanes were opened at 10:35 a.m.

The robot picked up the pipe and placed it in a container. The pipe was taken to a range where it was cracked open.

The Mini-Andros is one of two robots purchased by the Honolulu Police Department from Remotec of Oak Ridge, Tenn., said Capt. Doug Miller of the Specialized Services Division.