See our latest here: A Disneyland insider has been arrested in connection with the blast.

A minor blast inside a Disneyland trash can scared the bejesus out of tourists and locals alike and had authorities temporarily evacuating Mickey's Toontown before they realized how minor tonight's apparent prank was.

Our sister publication OC Weekly was one of the first to break the news of the baby explosion and subsequent evacuation:

Police say they got the call shortly before 5:30 p.m.

But arriving cops were quickly aware of what they were dealing with, Anaheim police Sgt. Bob Dunn told us, because they had seen the prank before.

“We have responded to these types of incidents in our neighborhoods where these people have done this,” Dunn said. “Our officers generally know what they're looking at.”

It appeared to be a water bottle filled with dry ice. Dunn explained to LA Weekly how it works:

When you put the dry ice inside the water bottle it expands and it makes the air want to escape. You put the lid on and it keeps expanding and the bottle fails and you have an explosion-type nose.


View Larger Map

The escaping dry ice can create that smoky effect it's known for, thus scaring people even more, Dunn said.

He agreed that this was a prank, but said it would be taken seriously, with Orange County bomb squad investigators on the case.

The prankster, if found, is looking at a police-recommended charge of allegedly violating California penal code 18740, exploding or attempting to explode a device with intent to intimidate or injure, which carries as many as 7 years behind bars upon conviction, Dunn said.

Let us guess what the suspect might look like: Teen-aged and pimply faced. Just sayin.'

The scare only lasted two hours, and evacuees and other park-goers were allowed to enjoy Toontown about 7:30 p.m., the sergeant said.

Send feedback and tips to the author. Follow Dennis Romero on Twitter at @dennisjromero. Follow LA Weekly News on Twitter at @laweeklynews.

Advertising disclosure: We may receive compensation for some of the links in our stories. Thank you for supporting LA Weekly and our advertisers.