White Township, Pennsylvania A new homeowner found an old wooden box under the stairs while renovating his home before moving in. Upon inspecting the contents, he found it filled with military munitions. He stuck it back under the stairs and continued with his project. It wasn't until it was actually time to move in that he decided he should contact authorities about the find.
Brownsville, Washington A Washington State Department of Natural Resources employee motoring a shellfish bed off Bainbridge Island reported a strange object drifting in the water between Brownsville Marina and the west shore of Bainbridge Island. Concerned that it looked dangerous, the employee called the item into the Coast Guard to investigate.
The Coast Guard responded along with the Navy and other multiple agencies. At first, the theory was that the marine encrusted item was a WWII era sea mine. As such, the responding Navy, Coast Guard , and law enforcement officials enforced a safety zone around the drifting item while they tried to determine if it potentially contained explosives.
James Island, South Carolina An Air Force EOD team from Joint Base Charleston removed an old UXO from a home on James Island. The James Island Fire Department and Charleston County Bomb Squad were also called to the scene after a woman found the device in her shed.
The area was blocked of and neighboring homes were evacuated as EOD removed the ordnance to transport it out of the neighborhood for disposal at Joint Base Charleston.
Newport News, Virginia A house remodel turned EOD response when a couple found a WWII bazooka behind a panel in their garage. Realizing the potential danger, the homeowners contacted the Newport News Police who responded with the Newport News Fire department.
The pair was removing paneling on the garage walls when they found a container which read "Container M-87." Police on the scene called in the bomb squad who rendered the munition safe, then took it to Naval Weapons Station Yorktown for proper disposal.
West Sussex, England Employees at an English real estate agency discovered something frightening as they prepared to move to a new location. While in the basement of the office building, employees found a grenade with pin in place, wedged between the floor and a pipe.
The grenade was photographed and the building and surrounding workplaces were evacuated for safety. The photo was sent to EOD personnel for identification. An EOD team arrived on scene and was able to verify that the grenade was inert and hence did not present an explosive threat. Although inert, EOD removed the munition from the office basement for disposal.
Kealia, Hawaii For three days, an unidentified metal object was rolling around at Kealia Beach in Hawaii. Fearing the worst, local police contacted the Pacific Missile Range Facility (PMRF) and the US Navy EOD team.
Unfortunately, high tides and shifting sands made the unidentified object difficult to locate. Once the tides turned, favorable surf eventually revealed where the 3-foot-diameter object finally came to rest on the beach.
US Navy EOD were then able to identify the object not as an explosive, but as a metal buoy. The PMRF spokesman stressed that in cases of uncertainty, call 911 and stay nearby to help responding teams find the possible ordnance.
Middletown, Ohio A grenade was found in the Great Miami River by a fly fisherman who was standing almost 20 feet from shore in 2 feet of water.
Fortunately, the fisherman was recognized the device for what it was and contacted local police who responded with technical support provided by the Butler County Sheriff's Office Bomb Squad. A spokesman described the device as an "old pineapple grenade" and indicated that the device was still live.
Dorset, United Kingdom sailors aboard Merchant tanker ship, Skaw Provider, were surprised to find an old torpedo caught in the ship's anchor while raising the anchor from outside Portland Port. The flute of the anchor pierced the torpedo exposing the interior components of the ordnance.
The ship's captain notified the Coast Guard who responded with technical support provided by an EOD team from the Royal Navy's Southern Diving Unit based in Portsmouth. Due to safety concerns from the UXO, the ship was evacuated of all non-essential personnel and fuel was pumped from the ship's tanks that were close to the torpedo before EOD began their operations.
Devon, United Kingdom Construction workers dismantling a wall at a farmhouse made a startling discovery -- an exploded shell hidden in the wall. The workers notified the farm personnel who called the police. A Royal Navy bomb disposal team responded and transported the item to nearby field for proper disposal.
The manager of the farm told Authorities that "the grandparents of the owners used to use the bomb as a door stop." She added that the wife of the former farmer "wanted it out of the way" and so "he buried it in the wall". The UXO was identified as a WWI era projectile.
Kamloops, Canada Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) responded to the site where what was believed to be a military smoke grenade had been activated, but failed to ignite. The item was treated as live ordnance, and the area was cordoned off while RCMP EOD safely disposed of the grenade. An investigation is underway to determine who discarded the grenade on the public road.
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