thedrifter
11-05-07, 07:52 PM
11/05/2007
Gardener finds grenade
By: Jessica Bruni, Times Staff
BEAVER - Becky Durr was digging around the garden of her Beaver home Sunday, planning to plant some mums, when she unearthed what she thought was a large rock - albeit an odd pineapple-shaped rock.
"She brought it over to me and said, 'Is this what I think it is?' " Durr's husband, Matt Durr, recalled.
As it turned out, the "rock" actually was an Mk 2 hand grenade, commonly called a "pineapple" grenade because of its distinctively shaped body.
The couple called Beaver police, who after viewing the device, notified the Allegheny County Bomb Squad.
The bomb squad confirmed the device was a training grenade that although hollowed, contained a live fuse. The effect of detonating it would have been similar to a firecracker.
Matt Durr, who served in the Marines, said he had enough experience to know the device was still dangerous, even with the absence of gun powder. He calmly instructed his wife to put the explosive down.
"If it had gone off, it would have been enough to remove some fingers," he said.
Becky Durr said she was disturbed that she had even unknowingly touched the grenade.
"After he told me the pin was still in it, I was kind of upset that I picked it up," she said.
After some initial hesitation, the couple dialed 911.
"We told them, we don't know if this is an emergency, but we found this grenade in our backyard," Matt Durr said.
He said the bomb squad spent about 45 minutes removing the device. The squad, Durr said, also swept the area with a metal detector searching for other explosives without finding anything.
"Although they did find a couple of bolts and a penny from 1966," he said.
Durr said he had no idea where the grenade could have come from, although he noted the last owner of the home was a veteran.
"It was an old-style grenade, probably vintage from the Korean War," Durr said.
During the entire episode, which he and his wife spent on the opposite end of their property from the grenade, Durr said he wasn't scared.
"It was more disbelief than anything else," he said.
Jessica Bruni can be reached online at jbruni@timesonline.com.
Ellie
Gardener finds grenade
By: Jessica Bruni, Times Staff
BEAVER - Becky Durr was digging around the garden of her Beaver home Sunday, planning to plant some mums, when she unearthed what she thought was a large rock - albeit an odd pineapple-shaped rock.
"She brought it over to me and said, 'Is this what I think it is?' " Durr's husband, Matt Durr, recalled.
As it turned out, the "rock" actually was an Mk 2 hand grenade, commonly called a "pineapple" grenade because of its distinctively shaped body.
The couple called Beaver police, who after viewing the device, notified the Allegheny County Bomb Squad.
The bomb squad confirmed the device was a training grenade that although hollowed, contained a live fuse. The effect of detonating it would have been similar to a firecracker.
Matt Durr, who served in the Marines, said he had enough experience to know the device was still dangerous, even with the absence of gun powder. He calmly instructed his wife to put the explosive down.
"If it had gone off, it would have been enough to remove some fingers," he said.
Becky Durr said she was disturbed that she had even unknowingly touched the grenade.
"After he told me the pin was still in it, I was kind of upset that I picked it up," she said.
After some initial hesitation, the couple dialed 911.
"We told them, we don't know if this is an emergency, but we found this grenade in our backyard," Matt Durr said.
He said the bomb squad spent about 45 minutes removing the device. The squad, Durr said, also swept the area with a metal detector searching for other explosives without finding anything.
"Although they did find a couple of bolts and a penny from 1966," he said.
Durr said he had no idea where the grenade could have come from, although he noted the last owner of the home was a veteran.
"It was an old-style grenade, probably vintage from the Korean War," Durr said.
During the entire episode, which he and his wife spent on the opposite end of their property from the grenade, Durr said he wasn't scared.
"It was more disbelief than anything else," he said.
Jessica Bruni can be reached online at jbruni@timesonline.com.
Ellie