Burnham-On-Coastguards were called to Brean beach on Friday afternoon (March 8th) after possible ordnance was discovered in the sand by several metal detector enthusiasts.
The Coastguard Operations Centre in Milford Haven had received reports of possible ordnance found by the enthusiasts who were visiting for the day.
“Today they uncovered something a little unexpected!” said a Coastguard spokesman.
“After a little exploring and digging they found two different items that caused them to be a little concerned, they approached the Brean Beach Warden who called it in.”
“Upon arrival, the metal detector guys showed us what they had uncovered, firstly there was a disc-shaped object that had obviously corroded somewhat, and then there was another item that was still in the hole and covered with water. It had fragmented while they were trying to dig it out and they were worried that it may be something dangerous so stopped digging immediately.”
“One of our team took some photos of the objects which were then sent over to the Coastguard Operations Centre who then, in turn, sent them to the EOD team (Explosive Ordnance Disposal) for analysis.”
“Without being able to see what the second find was due to the water they decided that it would be a good idea to come up and have a look for themselves just to be completely safe.”
“After arriving on scene they quickly set about inspecting the items using their sophisticated hand tools such as their military spec metal detector and a pickaxe, because who doesn’t want to clout a possible explosive with something heavy and sharp!”
“After just a few minutes their inspections were over, nothing went bang and as it turned out there wasn’t any danger, it was just pieces of old metal.”
“This kind of call isn’t unusual as our coastline just like so many other countries are still uncovering many WW2 era devices, either dropped by enemy planes or leftover munitions from the local guard, or items that have kicked about for years before eventually washing up.”
“We normally get these after higher tides and storm conditions, and the metal detector enthusiasts who stumble upon these items while out.”
“We always advise that if you see anything that may look unusual then please don’t touch it. Make a note of where you have seen it and move to a safe distance, contact either the local beach warden or lifeguard who will call it in or simply dial 999 and ask for the Coastguard, tell them what you have found and where.”
Photos: Burnham Coastguard & Burnham-On-Sea.com
