UXO News Roundup, 31/05/2024
On Thursday 16th May, officers at West Mercia Police received reports of an item of unexploded ordnance being discovered in a garden on Yarranton Close, Stourport-on-Severn, Worcestershire. An Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) team attended the scene and the device was destroyed in a controlled explosion in a nearby field. The exact nature of the device is unconfirmed – it has been variously reported as a ‘WWII artillery shell’ and ‘WWI-era 13lb artillery shell’.
Image Credits: Kidderminster Shuttle, courtesy of West Mercia Police.
See:
Yarranton Close: Bomb Disposal detonate WWII device | Kidderminster Shuttle
Stourport homes evacuated after World War One device found – BBC News
On the afternoon of 21st May, Merseyside Police were called to the discovery by workmen of a ‘suspected unexploded bomb’ at the Unilever factory in Port Sunlight, near Birkenhead. The factory was evacuated, and an EOD team was called to the scene to remove the device. Merseyside Police and the MoD have yet to confirm the exact nature of the device.
See: Unilever factory evacuated after unexploded bomb found – Liverpool Echo
On the 24th May, Winterton Coastguard and Norfolk Police attended reports of a suspected unexploded bomb being discovered on the beach at Winterton-on-Sea, on the east Norfolk Coast. An EOD team were called to assess the device, which was destroyed in a controlled explosion. The device is reported to have been of WWII origin, but details have yet to be confirmed.
See: Police receive reports of bomb found on Winterton beach | Eastern Daily Press (edp24.co.uk)
Devon and Cornwall Police were called on 26th May to the discovery of a suspected unexploded device in a garden in Colaton Raleigh, near Sidmouth, Devon. A Royal Navy EOD team attended the scene and the device was identified as a WWII German 1kg incendiary bomb. The device was removed and safely detonated in a nearby field.
See: Suspected WW2 bomb found in Devon garden – BBC News
On the 28th May, homes were evacuated and a police cordon established in Lytham St. Annes, in Lancashire, after an item of ‘old, unexploded ordnance’ was removed from the beach to an address in Clifton Drive North. An EOD team attended the scene and the cordon was later removed. Authorities have yet to issue any further updates.
See: St Annes homes evacuated after unexploded bomb found on beach and taken to house – LancsLive
On 29th May, West Mercia Police attended the discovery of an item of suspected unexploded ordnance on a footpath in woods near Rhydycroesau, on the Powys border. An EOD team was called to the scene and the device was identified as a ‘live, unexploded shell’. The ordnance was destroyed in a controlled explosion. The MoD have yet to confirm the exact nature/origins of the device.
See: Bomb disposal called to live shell on Powys border footpath | County Times
Image Credits: Powys County Times, courtsey of Andrew Mayfield
