Paris, France A 500-kg WWII bomb forced one of the largest rail disruptions in the French capital in years. The munition was found during construction of a new bridge near the rail tracks and left thousands of stranded passengers waiting for its safe removal.

Police responded to evacuate the area, including 200 residents in the area around the Gare du Nord train station, the country's busiest railway terminus serving international trains to London and mainland Europe.

Once the ordnance was defused, Philippe Tabarot, France's transport minister, confirmed that the 500-kilogram bomb "contained 200 kilogram of explosives."

While some passengers were annoyed with the disruptions, Owen Pritchard, a tourist seeking to return to London, was relieved. "I don't want to get on a train that runs over any unexploded WWII ordnance," he said. "I would rather they clear that and then make sure it's safe to travel."

Matthieu Chabanel, head of rail infrastructure management unit SNCF (France's national state-owned railway company) network, said that finding a bomb of such size was "really quite exceptional." He explained in a statement to reporters, "We know that during WWII, the rail network was heavily bombed, especially here north of Paris where there were also many factories."

The removal operations were safe and effective, and full service to the station was resumed the following day.

Saint-Denis Suburb, Paris. An unexploded World War II bomb was found causing traffic at Gare du Nord, one of France's busiest train stations, to come to a complete halt until the ordnance could be safely defused. The bomb was discovered around 3:30 a.m. during track maintenance.

Authorities then began to halt all train services, including Eurostar connections to London, Brussels, and Amsterdam, causing significant travel disruptions. Over 300 police officers secured the area, as the bomb, weighing more than 1,000 pounds and containing over 400 pounds of explosives, was unearthed during landscaping work. Evacuations of nearby homes and lockdowns of schools were implemented for safety.

New Forest, England A bomb squad was called in after a child found UXO on a beach and the parents reported the find to the Calshot Beach activity center.

The area was cordoned off until the bomb squad could respond to remove it. A spokesperson for New Forest Police said, "Report made to the control room that a child had found a suspected unexploded ordnance at Calshot beach today."

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Wauwinet, Massachusetts A Massachusetts State Police bomb squad safety detonated an old military munition discovered by workers digging a trench for a water line at a home in Wauwinet. The crew immediately reported the suspicious device to a Nantucket Fire Department fire prevention officer who was on the scene conducting an unrelated inspection.

One of the workers told reporters, "We were digging a trench for the water line and discovered it. As soon as the police and firefighters showed up, the whole site got locked down and all the workers had to leave right away."

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Vancouver, Washington Vancouver Police were called to a construction site at Pearson Airfield after an archaeologist unearthed what appeared to be an unexploded WWI Stokes mortar.

The police department's Mobile Explosive Device Unit and personnel from U.S. Air Force EOD were called in to safely dispose of the mortar. Vancouver Police said the teams also "found and safely donated several more" ordnance during construction.

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Sr. UXO Supervisor - Pinecastle Range - Ocala, Florida - Full-Time Position

Ordnance Holdings, Inc. (OHI), a Tampa, Florida based unexploded ordnance (UXO), engineering and environmental services company, is looking for a well-qualified Sr. UXO Supervisor (SUXOS) to fill a full-time position at Pinecastle Range in Ocala, Florida.

Minimum Education Level

• High school graduate or equivalent.
• Graduate of military Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) School (Eglin AFB, FL or Indian Head, MD).

Minimum Experience Requirement

• Ten (10) years' prior military EOD and/or commercial UXO experience in range clearance operations; explosive ordnance recognition; and recovering, inspecting, handling, and disposing of UXO.
• Working knowledge of the MPPEH categorization, inspection, verification, and certification process.
• Meet all DDESB TP-18 requirements for a SUXOS.
• Ability to speak, read, and write English.
• Bachelor's degree considered a plus.

Description of General Duties

• Oversee site UXO operations and maintenance personnel including subcontractors.
• Engage with site program functional representatives to coordinate and deconflict operations and systems and site maintenance including the start-up, control, and shutdown of equipment and operations to meet economic and environmental standards.
• Oversee the maintenance, repair, construction, and operation of all assigned systems and supporting infrastructure.

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