Fireworks-and-gasoline ‘device’ causes Helena High School students to cancel anti-ICE protest

The discovery of a “suspected improvised explosive device” Thursday led Helena police, school authorities and a student organizer at Helena High School to cancel a walkout that had been planned as a protest against aggressive Immigration and Customs Enforcement activities.

The device consisted of a jug of gasoline and fireworks, according to a statement from Helena Public Schools. The explosive materials were discovered on private property near Dakota and Davis street, according to a police press release. The corner of Dakota and Davis is behind the Capital City Health Club, which is across Montana Avenue from the high school.

According to police, a person discovered the device and removed it from the immediate area and called authorities at about 10 a.m., around an hour before the protest was scheduled to start. Law enforcement agencies including the Lewis and Clark County Sheriff’s Office’s bomb squad; the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; and the FBI searched the surrounding area and found no other threats. Authorities say they are continuing to investigate the incident. 

Helena High senior Ella Nasset, the protest’s central organizer, said the demonstration had been planned as a way to “spread peace” in response to ICE adopting more aggressive tactics after President Donald Trump took office for his second term last year. In a Wednesday interview with Montana Free Press, Nasset also noted eight individuals have been killed by ICE so far in 2026.

“Many people I know personally have had ICE question them at Home Depot, at the grocery store, and ask them for their papers — which thank God they had with them,” Nasset said. “But no one’s safe. And seeing American citizens that are not criminals, that are white, getting killed by ICE, just proves that no one is really safe.”

Nasset said she was pulled from class by school administrators about 45 minutes before the protest was supposed to begin and informed about a “suspicious item.”

“They thought it would be in my best interest to cancel the protest,” Nasset said. “And it was upsetting to hear, but my priority is always our students’ safety.” 

Nasset said she hopes to work with law enforcement to plan another walkout in the future. She also said she planned to join another protest planned at the state Capitol Thursday afternoon.

Helena Public Schools Superintendent Rex Weltz published a message about the situation on Thursday afternoon, saying there were “no known threats” to school buildings at that time. Nonetheless, he wrote “the Helena Police Department (HPD) advised that student organized walk-outs be cancelled in an abundance of caution for all students’ safety.”