Kids find Gernades with Metal Detector in Florida

[abmm]

Oh man.

That's a WWII british 2-inch mortar shell. We find those all the time. However, we never , EVER touch them or move them. I know it would have been irresponsible to have just left it there once you found it, but darn, you were lucky.

You see, ordnance such as the one in the photo is a classic UXO, a dud round. That means it has been fired, but malfunctioned for some reason. You wouldn't know the reason for said malfunction, it could be a missing primer or booster, or it could just be a liitle piece of grit holding back the spring for the striker. Moving or dropping the round could easily dislodge the obstruction and boom! This stuff is designed to kill, and it does so very effectively.

That Bermuda Regiment officer should have known better than to mess around with the detonator. That's just crazy!

Without giving any sort of lecture, maybe calling the police would be a good idea next time. That takes the responsibility of securing the UXO off your hands and ensures that the area is cordoned off until Monday when the EOD (or ignorant ranking officers can get to it and make it safe.


I'm glad you survived.

PS: if you find anything that someone tells you is a white phosphorous round, DO NOT go anywhere near it. White phos ignites on contact with the air, so moving it might just dislodge that piece of corroded casing that exposes the WP filler to the elements for the first time in 65 years.

[bdahunter]

I hear you, Mate. I was pretty nervous the whole time but there wasn't much else I could do at the time. Calling the police would have been worse in all likelihood, based on my experience with them but that's another story for another time. I take it you've never lived on a tropical island before, trust me when I say that reality as we know it suspended indefinitely. The joys of living in the Bermuda Triangle. Fortunately, I'm enough of a pirate and just crazy enough to survive here.

Kind Regards,

BDA

[EBCIII]

I had missed this post somehow. Those kids were very lucky. I am glad no one was hurt.


As for that bomb BDA. I would have had to clean my shorts when that dude wiggled the detonator, Beale.