Ellensburg, Washington A resident called 911 after uncovering a live mortar round while digging in their backyard. Local officers immediately responded to the scene, and the Yakima Training Center's EOD team was called in to successfully disable and remove the UXO.
Worcester, England A landscaper who thought he had found an old Coke bottle quickly discovered it was a bit more dangerous than that. Paul Probert was using a mechanical digger on a residential property when he uncovered a WWII UXO.
Probert said, "I put it to one side, rolled it out, and that's when I suddenly realized 'this is a bit more than a Coke bottle'."
West Mercia Police responded within 10 minutes to cordon off the area and evacuate the street. EOD was called in to carry out a controlled detonation.
Probert added that the ordnance was "slightly rusted with a bit of a scrape mark on the top where I'd hit it with the digger, my lucky day I think."
West Bend, Wisconsin A landscaper notified the West Bend Police Department after discovering what appeared to be a grenade buried in the dirt beneath some shrubs. The area was evacuated, and Milwaukee County EOD responded to safely remove the device.
The munition was determined to be an inert grenade that appeared to have been in the shrubs for quite a while. The case remains under investigation.
Dunedin, New Zealand New Zealand Police and EOD were called to residential property after a suspected UXO was found during construction. According to a New Zealand Defence Force spokesperson, an EOD team responded to a request for assistance from police to investigate the item, later identified as an inert two-pounder armor-piercing projectile and cartridge case.
EOD safely removed the munition for proper disposal. Officials said it had likely been under the house for some time.
York Country, Pennsylvania A Pennsylvania State Police Bomb Disposal Unit was called in to remove an old UXO discovered by a construction crew in York County. Police and the Strinestown Fire Company secured the area while the munition was safely removed. The police department posted the following photo of the item on social media, but no additional information was provided.
Cary, North Carolina Fort Liberty EOD safely removed an old military munition found at a home in Cary. According to the Cary Police Department, EOD recovered the old grenade along with several rounds of ammunition from the backyard.
The homeowner reportedly found the UXO while landscaping. An excavator being used struck the metal object, prompting the homeowner to stop and notify authorities.
Police believe the ordnance belonged to a previous owner of the property, a retired military veteran who is now deceased.
Camp Humphreys, South Korea EOD safely disposed of a 1,000-pound Korean War UXO discovered at a construction site in Cheongju city. According to a South Korean Air Force spokesperson, the AN-M65 general-purpose bomb from the 1950s conflict was partially dismantled and removed without incident.
Air Force EOD removed the bomb's detonator about two hours after it was discovered, the spokesperson said. The bomb was then removed for further investigation. "Our [EOD] members are experts and have always been making their efforts for national security and the people," the spokesman said.
Brooksville, Florida Construction workers unearthed a 1,000-pound WWII-era bomb at Brooksville Tampa Bay Regional Airport in Florida, prompting evacuations while experts responded to evaluate the potential threat.
According to Hernando County Sheriff Al Nienhuis, the ordnance was "so rusted and decayed" that there was no immediate way of telling if it was live. The Citrus County bomb squad initially responded to the scene. They called the AF EOD for technical support since the item was military ordnance.
Joshua Tree, California Bomb disposal teams from the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department and Marine Corps responded after ordnance was found during construction at a home in Joshua Tree.
Deputies determined the objects were military ordnance and EOD from Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center safely removed them. The exact type of ordnance discovered was not reported. An investigation as to how the ordnance ended up at the site is ongoing.
Hillsboro, New Hampshire A backyard construction project in Hillsboro ended with a visit from the bomb squad after construction crews reportedly found an unexploded mortar while they were digging. The local bomb squad responded to safely remove the UXO.
According to police, it will be disposed of by a controlled detonation. The police reported that they are unaware of the age of the mortar or how it ended up on private property.
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