Underwater ROV Hobbyists Locate Live UXO in River

North Yorkshire, England Adam Makewell and his 14-year-old son Cameron have made some interesting finds in the past with their underwater ROV, from cell phones to Roman tiles. However, nothing was quite exciting as their recent find of a live 1,100-lb WWII bomb.

The pair had taken the drone to the river Ure to test new lights on the ROV when they spotted what looked like a propane tank. "We just popped out for an hour to try out some new lights on the remotely operated underwater vehicle that I use," Adam explained.

"Cameron got some footage for me so I could look at what the light spread was like. When he'd finished, I told him to go off and find something interesting. Next thing I knew, Cameron said he'd found something."

"As soon as I saw the shape of it, especially the front, I knew he'd found a bomb. A rather big bomb at that," he said.

The two went to the police station to report the suspect device, and soon after a Royal Navy crew was sent to recover the device. After several attempts, a bomb disposal team was able to use a shaped charge to render the munition safe.

The bomb disposal team removed the remnants of the casing and told Adam that they planned to deep clean and x-ray it ensure it was safe. "Then, we can more than likely get it back to put in a local museum," Adam said.

"I was nervous," said Cameron. "Finding a bomb isn't something you do every day."