Palm Springs car explosion being investigated as terrorism: 1 dead

Fertility clinic targeted in Palm Springs bombing

A car exploded in Palm Springs while parked near a fertility clinic. Federal investigators say the clinic was the target of a terrorist attack.

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. - A car exploded outside a reproductive clinic in Palm Springs on Saturday morning, in what the FBI is investigating as an act of terrorism. At least one person was killed in the blast, and four were hospitalized. Federal officials are investigating.

What we know:

The City of Palm Springs Facebook page confirmed that a car exploded around 11 a.m. Saturday, on North Indian Canyon Drive near East Tachevah Drive. According to officials, one person was killed, and four people were hospitalized.

At a press conference Saturday evening, the FBI said it is investigating the blast as an act of terrorism.

"Make no mistake, this is an intentional act of terrorism," said Akil Davis from the FBI's Los Angeles office. "The FBI is investigating it as such."  

Palm Springs explosion is 'act of terrorism'

A car explosion in Palm Springs is being investigated as an act of Terrorism, according to the FBI. Officials say they believe a local fertility clinic was targeted.

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The explosion happened just outside American Reproductive Centers, a fertility clinic. Davis said that investigators believe the clinic was targeted.

In a post on Facebook, the clinic said that none of their staff were hurt.

"We are immensely grateful to share that no members of the ARC team were harmed, and our lab—including all eggs, embryos, and reproductive materials—remains fully secure and undamaged. We are heavily conducting a complete safety inspection and have confirmed that our operations and sensitive medical areas were not impacted by the blast."

Officials said they do have a person of interest, but that they are not actively searching for them.

Car explodes in Palm Springs

A car exploded in Palm Springs Saturday morning outside a fertility clinic. Investigators believe it may have been intentional. (Credit Luis Roman via Storyful and @_nimasworld via Storyful)

What they're saying:

Nima Tabrizi, 37, of Santa Monica, told the Associated Press that he was inside a nearby cannabis dispensary when he felt a massive explosion.

"The building just shook, and we go outside and there's massive cloud smoke," Tabrizi tikd the AP.

"Crazy explosion. It felt like a bomb went off. ... We went up to the scene, and we saw human remains."

What we don't know:

The person who was killed in the blast has not yet been identified. The four people who were hospitalized also were not identified, and their conditions aren't known.