UXO News Roundup, 21/10/2024
Hemsby Beach
On the 13th September, Norfolk Police were called to the discovery of an item of suspected unexploded ordnance on Hemsby Beach, East Norfolk. A Royal Navy (RN) Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) team were called to attend the scene but the device was covered by the incoming tide before the item could be assessed. The EOD team were later unable to locate the device, whose exact nature remains unconfirmed.
See: Bomb found by member of public at Hemsby washed away | Great Yarmouth Mercury
Llanberis
On the 20th September, North Wales Police and an Army EOD team attended reports of ‘unexploded ordnance’ being discovered on the side of the A4086 at Llanberis, Gwynedd. The discovery forced closure of the road for around 2 hours, whilst a controlled detonation of the device was carried out in situ. The exact nature of the device has yet to be confirmed.
See: Llanberis incident: Bomb squad detonate device that shut road for two hours – North Wales Live
Ynyslas, Ceredigion
On the 20th September, crews from Borth and Aberystwyth Coastguards were called to attend the discovery of an item of suspected unexploded ordnance on the beach at Ynyslas, Ceredigion. The device was covered in the evening by the incoming tide, but was safely detonated by an EOD team on the morning of Saturday 21st. The exact nature of the device has yet to be confirmed.
This is certainly not the first time that UXO has been found at the beach. During WWII, Ynyslas was used as an important military research base (the Ministry of Supply Experimental Establishment Anti-Aircraft), testing rockets with different fuels. The facilities were associated with the Liquid Oxygen and Petroleum Guided Anti-Aircraft Projectile (LOPGAP) project. The foreshore was marked out with a target grid and impacts recorded.
Image Credits: Powys County Times, courtesy of HM Coastguard Borth
See: Bomb squad detonates device found at Ynyslas beach in Wales | County Times
Croxton
On the morning of 9th October, Norfolk Police were alerted to the discovery of a ‘suspected unexploded bomb’ in Coxton, near Thetford. The device was destroyed by an EOD team in a controlled explosion. Reported as a ‘suspected WWII bomb’, the exact nature of the device has not yet been confirmed.
See: Unexploded WW2 bomb closes four roads across Croxton | Thetford & Brandon Times
Avonmouth
Also on the 9th October, Avon and Somerset Police attended reports of a ‘suspected unexploded device’ being discovered during construction works on Kings Weston Lane, Avonmouth, Bristol. A cordon was established and an EOD team attended the scene. Kings Weston Lane later reopened, but no further updates have been released.
See: Avonmouth cordon after ‘unexploded device’ found – BBC News
Leeds
On the 10th October, the area around Cross Gates Railway Station in Leeds, West Yorkshire, was evacuated and rail services faced significant delays, after a ‘suspected mortar bomb’ was discovered on a building site in nearby Manston Lane. An EOD team attended the scene and assessed the item, which was confirmed as not viable, and rail services later resumed. The exact nature of the item has not been confirmed.
Watchet
On the 14th October, an item of suspected unexploded ordnance was discovered on the shoreline of the Bristol Channel near East Quay, Watchet. Watchet Coastguard and a RN EOD team attended the scene and the device was removed for safe disposal.
Image Credits: West Somerset Free Press, courtesy of Watchet Coastguard
See: Royal Navy removes suspected Second World War unexploded bomb found in Watchet | wsfp.co.uk
Warrington
On the 18th October, an Army EOD team attended the discovery of a ‘suspected unexploded bomb’ in the garden of a residential property on Prestbury Drive, Thelwall, Warrington, in Cheshire. The device, confirmed as a British WWII-era practice bomb, was destroyed in a controlled explosion.
Image Credits: Warrington Guardian
See: Controlled explosion as Second World War bomb found in Thelwall garden | Warrington Guardian
