Hamburg, Germany Workers at a scrap recycling facility found an old bomb mixed in with a pile of scrap metal that was being processed. The workers called the police who responded with technical support from a bomb disposal unit. The bomb was identified as a WWII era 500-pound U.S. aerial bomb (specific nomenclature not reported).

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Ystradgynlais, Wales workers at the Brecon household waste and recycling centre discovered a marine flare amongst the items turned in for recycling. The workers notified the police who responded with a military EOD team to remove the hazard from the facility. The munitions find was not the first find of its kind at the recycling facility. Just over a year ago, an unexploded artillery shell was found mixed in with other household waste. In a separate incident a few weeks later, detonators were discovered at another nearby recycling facility. No injuries were reported in any of the incidents.

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California, Maryland Workers at the St. Mary's landfill in southern Maryland sifting through discarded metal debris came across an old military projectile. The workers called the police who responded with state fire marshal officials and a bomb squad. The 316th Air Force EOD unit based out of Andrews Air Force Base was also contacted for support. EOD responded and removed the projectile to safe area where it was destroyed in an open detonation operation.

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Albertville, Alabama Workers at the Progress Rail Services metal recycling facility found a 500-pound bomb mixed in with a load of scrap metal sent to the facility for processing. The workers called the police who referred the call to the Marshal County Emergency Management Agency (EMA). EMA in turn referred the call to Redstone Arsenal who referred the call to Fort Benning. Fort Benning dispatched EOD to respond. EOD identified the bomb as an inert MK 80 series training bomb. Since the bomb was inert, it did not pose any explosive safety hazard. EOD transported the bomb back to Fort Benning for proper disposal. The origin of the bomb is unknown and Authorities are trying to establish how the bomb ended up at the recycling facility in the first place.

Ohatchee, Alabama workers at the Taylor Road Recycling Center got an unexpected surprise when they opened a crate marked "empty" and found what was reported as a "15-foot missile" inside. The workers called police who responded with EOD teams from Anniston Army Depot and Fort Benning. Upon examination of the item, EOD determined the ordnance was inert and harmless. Authorities are trying to trace back the origin of the missile to determine how it ended up at the recycling facility.

Arkoma, Oklahoma a worker at the Taffe Iron and Metal Plant was injured when a munition item he was cutting with a blow torch exploded. The injured worker was rushed to the Fort Smith hospital in nearby Arkansas. The male victim is reportedly in critical condition at the hospital as a result of injuries sustained in the explosion. The munition item involved in the incident has been in storage at the recycling facility for almost 15 years along with a pile of approximately 200 other projectiles (155mm and 175mm). The munitions were supposed to be inert but it appears at least one of them was not.

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UXO has been turning up at metal recycling facilities for many years at sites all across the world. The rising cost of metals and other materials has only made the problem worse by increasing the temptation for people to steal munitions from range areas in an attempt to make a quick profit. The latest incident occurred in Manila, Philippines where 47 WII era bombs were recovered by authorities from a metal recycler in Caloocan City.

The items recovered ranged in size from 37mm to 155mm projectiles including projectiles with live HE fillers. Members of the EOD team based in Camp Crame rendered the UXO safe and transported the items to a range on the installation for proper disposal.

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Laval, Quebec, Canada Workers at SNF, Inc, a metal recycling company, came across a large bomb in a pile of scrap metal waiting to be processed. The workers called the police who responded. A military EOD unit was called in to assess the situation. The area was evacuated and the bomb safely transported by EOD. The exact type of bomb was not reported but it is believed to be a WWII era bomb. Determining the source of the bomb is proving difficult as the recycler receives truck loads of metal every day from numerous sources.

The co-mingling of metals in the recycling industry has always been a challenge for the UXO industry as it makes it very difficult to maintain an account of where munitions debris and related scrap ultimately end up.

Salina, Kansas A landscaper almost fell off his tractor when he came across two 500 pound bombs while cutting grass behind the Salina Iron and Metal Scrap Yard. The landscaper called the police who responded with technical support provided by the 774th EOD unit from Fort Riley.

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Phoenix, Arizona Maricopa County Sheriff's deputies responding to an unrelated incident at the All Products Recycling Center came across a munition item leaning against a fence. The Sheriff's Office called in the ATF and military EOD from Luke Air Force Base to respond. EOD identified the munition item as an inert rocket. Authorities are investigating how the munition ended up at the recycling facility in the first place.