Are Those Munitions In Your Oven?

Denver, Colorado Firefighters responded to an early morning call of smoke coming from an auditorium on the University Of Denver campus. The smoke was tracked to Professor Cobb's engineering research laboratory adjacent to the auditorium. The smoke was coming from an oven which firefighters found to be loaded with artillery shells. As a precaution, the bomb squad was called out and nearby buildings were evacuated.

After further investigation, the bomb squad determined that the munitions were inert and it was wax residue on the munitions that was causing the heavy smoke to pour from the oven. While munitions in ovens may be a strange sight at some universities, the University of Denver's Applied Research & Technology Institute specializes in ballistics and explosives analysis. Explosives testing are done at a range off-campus but sometimes inert munitions debris is brought back to the laboratory for analysis. Reportedly, heating the munitions in the ovens was part of the analysis.

Once it was determined that the munitions were inert, the nearby buildings were re-opened. Authorities are not looking to press any charges since no explosives violations were committed during the incident. Maybe next time students will inspect munitions debris further for wax and other debris before turning on the oven.