Norwich Police Evacuate Neighbors After 50cm Practice Bomb Found in Garden
Updated
Updated · BBC.com · May 28
Norwich Police Evacuate Neighbors After 50cm Practice Bomb Found in Garden
4 articles · Updated · BBC.com · May 28
Dowson Road neighbors in Norwich were evacuated Tuesday after a gardener found a rusted 50cm device in 87-year-old Valerie Smith's garden and called police.
Ewan Barnard, 24, spotted the object while clearing hedges, tried to move it out of the sun, then decided the heavy item could be dangerous and alerted officers.
Army specialists removed the device and later detonated it safely elsewhere, identifying it as a practice bomb used to fire flare signals 20,000 ft into the air.
Smith said the bomb had stood by her shed for 66 years after her son brought it home as a child, and guests had long handled it as a barbecue 'party piece.'
If a flare bomb became a garden toy, what modern technology do we misuse that could become a future hazard?
How many forgotten military 'souvenirs' are still hiding in plain sight, waiting to be rediscovered in our gardens?
When does a family heirloom cross the line from a quirky relic into a public safety emergency?