Live UXO Discovered on Beach

Chalkwall, England Army EOD safely disposed of a live UXO discovered by a bait digger in Chalkwell. The Southend Coastguard responded to assist in the operation which lasted two days before Army experts decided to dispose of the 18-lbs munition in place.

A spokesperson for the coastguard said, "Over the two days our teams inspected the suspected ordnance and worked with our Dover Coastguard coordination center and the Army EOD.

"On Thursday our Army EOD colleagues attended who were escorted out to the site and it was quickly determined this was a 'live' 18lbs bomb with TNT explosives inside originating from the years 1897 to 1947, so it could have been from the first or second world wars. A cordon was put in place and the Army EOD team went to work to prepare to safely explode the device in situ, which all went to plan and was completely destroyed."

The spokesperson thanked the EOD unit and issued this warning to the public, "Because these items can be so dangerous, if you ever see something suspicious or out of the ordinary on the beach or in the sea, do not touch it, move it or take it home. If you are unsure, let the experts decide if it is safe. Move to a safe space and call 999 and ask for the Coastguard so our teams can investigate."