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World News See other World News Articles Title: Florida metal hunters found a World War II-era grenade — and brought it to a local Taco Bell Florida metal hunters found a World War II-era grenade — and brought it to a local Taco Bell Alex Horton 10 hrs ago Detroit police search for 15-year-old girl who went missing 9 days ago © / The grenade (Ocala Police Department) But the man and woman, perhaps disappointed that their trawling of Florida’s Ocklawaha River had ended with a decades-old relic instead of the precious metals they were seeking, pointed their car west toward a popular fast-food destination: Taco Bell. The couple arrived at the restaurant and reported the find, prompting a bomb squad to be sent to carry off the grenade. It will be “destroyed off site at a later time,” according to an incident report from the Ocala Police Department. The grenade was corroded and did not appear to be functional, Lt. Angy Scroble said, but it was taken away out of an abundance of caution. The department described the scene as an “evacuation” on Twitter, but Scroble said officers merely secured the parking lot to keep patrons away. Some employees remained inside, she said. Bomb squad officers identified the grenade as produced in the World War II era, although it was unclear where, Scroble said. The nearby Ocala National Forest has been used for military training in the past, she said, adding that it was uncertain if that included any time during the 1940s. The couple involved did not return a request for comment. They were not charged with any crimes, Scroble said. © iStock/Getty Images/iStockphoto A grenade similar to the one found in Florida. (iStock) A photo from the department appeared to show the rusted husk of a Mk 2 grenade, popularly known as a “pineapple grenade” because of the rectangular ridges on its body. The weapons were carried by troops from the tail end of World War I through the Vietnam War. The unexploded detritus of war, such as land mines, unexploded bombs and other munitions, is likely to vex authorities and civilians for as long as there is conflict — and the weapons that come with it. World War II-era training bombs dropped by airplanes in the Atlantic have washed ashore in North Carolina, and U.S. coastal areas are littered with torpedoes and depth charges left after German U-boat attacks. The dangers go back further. In 2008, an American artifact collector was killed restoring a cannonball from the Civil War, one of the estimated 1.5 million artillery rounds and cannonballs fired in the conflict. Estimates say as many as 1 in 5 were duds, and some are now buried in the ground and could threaten construction projects in Virginia, Pennsylvania and elsewhere. European developers and construction workers routinely encounter unexploded ordnance from World War II. And in Vietnam and Laos, U.S.-supplied munitions have killed or wounded thousands since the war. But Saturday in central Florida saw a more tranquil conclusion. “Taco Bell has reopened,” the Ocala police said on Twitter. Poster Comment: boom shaka laka Post Comment Private Reply Ignore Thread
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