A stunned removal man discovered a World War Two bomb while clearing out the garage of a Coventry home.
Jim Haggerty (left) and Ryan Hartlett from A2B Removals
A STUNNED removal man discovered a World War Two bomb while clearing out the garage of a Coventry home.
The shock find sparked a major alert as police and an army bomb disposal team were called in.
The drama began at about 11am yesterday in Dersingham Drive, Aldermans Green, as a removal team was clearing out a house.
It was found by Jim Haggerty, of A2B Removals & Storage, who was clearing furniture from a storage unit left in the garage.
He said: “I had already cleared the house and started on the garage and I opened a drawer of the unit and saw it straight away.
“I picked it up to get a closer look and saw the date 1943 written on it. I put it back in the drawer and called the
police straight away and they sent for the bomb disposal team.”
Sgt Michael Weeks, of Coventry Police, said: “We secured the area, kept a safe distance away from the garage until we knew exactly what it was and waited on the bomb disposal team.
‘‘The mortar was inert and wouldn’t have caught fire but if it had, it could have caused a five-meter crater.”
The previous home owner was Marjorie Muirhead who died in November 2009.
Her son Alister hired the firm to clear the house just days after he sold it.
He believes the unit where the bomb was found, had been moved with furniture from his mum’s former home in South Wales in 1970s.
Alister, aged 61, who lives in Derbyshire, said: “She lived in south Wales since the war and it could have come up with the rest of her stuff with the house move.
“It could have been there all the time my mum was living there. I have no idea who put it in there.
“It’s unbelievable really – I’ve just come to check on the house.’’
The mortar was safely removed at about 1.30pm.
Neighbours considered evacuating their homes over concerns about the safety of their children.
Rajinder Badesha, a cleaner, who lives next door, said: “It’s quite scary really.’’
Philip Hall, aged 51, who lives opposite the house, said: “I’ve seen a lot of police officers around the house but I never thought it was because of a bomb. It does worry me.”
Neighbour Casper Dublin, aged 68, said: “It’s a bit worrying really. I’ve been living here for 20 years and haven’t experienced anything like this before.”
"Five-meter crater"? Early nuclear round was it? I'm surprised they didn't evacuate the entire city centre again?
