Diver finds live grenade in Puget Sound...yikes!

[lizard0924]

http://lakewood.komonews.com/content/ch ... ve-grenade

[ktb]

I was going to come up with a smartass remark until they mentioned the low tide exposing it on shore. What if a kid had found this?!? Glad the authorities took it seriously and it was destroyed. UGH.

[CaptnJack]

Doesn't the army keep track of this stuff?? Letting it ordinance or weapons off base in the first place seems like a huge no no.
Nevermind its the goverment how "with it" can they be

[Joshua Smith]

They do keep pretty close track of stuff like hand grenades- which is why you don't hear stories like this very often. Pretty freaking weird, though....

[DiverChris]

Guess you could say diving in Chambers Bay is a real blast.

Sorry, couldn't resist.

It's a good thing the diver didn't pick it up to check it out.

-Chris

[Mongo]

Holy Chistmas, that's crazy!

[WASP7000]

Heck yeah, looks like an M-67 frag, I've thrown those. Some divers have all the luck, that would make a great addition to an arsenal...


So I'm guessing someone managed to sneak one out, probably from training, to add to their collection. After owning it for a while (I assume the tape around the spoon was an added safety feature done by a nervous person), they either realized that it is really stupid to have one sitting around the house and got nervous, or they were being PCS'd (permanent change of station) by the Army, and had to get rid of it. So they got rid of it by way of so many people that get rid of evidence...throw it in the ocean! only this guy wasn't smart enough to get it deep. Probably just in a hurry.

[mz53480]

...So I'm guessing someone managed to sneak one out...

CHAD

...After owning it for a while (I assume the tape around the spoon was an added safety feature done by a nervous person), ...

CHAD

...or they were being PCS'd (permanent change of station)...and had to get rid of it. ...

hmmm....could it be.....CHAD!!?

...So they got rid of it by way of so many people that get rid of evidence...throw it in the ocean! ...

I've seen him throw knives in the water. It's not pretty.....

...only this guy wasn't smart enough to get it deep. ...

He does have a weak arm.....

...Probably just in a hurry.

Definately CHAD

[DiverChris]

In reading the comments to the story, this may have been a practice grenade and not a live one. Apparently the practice grenades are blue and you can see a spot of blue under the tape near the spoon.

Blowing the tire off could have been due to the charge setup to distroy the grenade.

[selkie]

Most training grenades as well as being blue have a hole in the bottom. The grenade in the photo does not have a hole in the bottom.

[WASP7000]

Most training grenades as well as being blue have a hole in the bottom. The grenade in the photo does not have a hole in the bottom.

Very true, practice grenades are live grenade fuses with a hollow grenade cavity, they just go pop. But no hole in bottom = probably a live grenade. Even the paperweights have a hole in the bottom I'm pretty sure.

I would agree to the notion that the tire being blown however many feet, was more than likely due to the countercharge that was used to destroy the grenade. They normally just set some C4 on top of them and "blow them down" instead of up.

MZ, pure awesomeness. It's possible that Chad was getting tired of using the spear and decided to try new ling aquiring tactics...

[Mongodives]

Wasn't that uncommon when I was in the Infantry for people to get back home or to the barracks after night live fire manuever ranges and find rounds, pyro, smoke and the occassional grenade in their kit they forgot to turn in. However they usually turned them into the ammunition amnesty point on base or did a live ammo turn in at the Ammunition supply point.
Throwing live stuff into the sound is/was kind of stupid.
Kinda suprised whoever did it didn't pull the pin and do some fishing.

[selkie]

Depending on how long they had the thing sitting around it may not have been a good idea to pull the pin. However, it was definitely not a good idea to dispose of it in a public water way. I have done some archaeological surveys at a former government facility dock I won’t name that had 50 and 100 year old ordinance lying all over the bottom. Almost like the dock was the unofficial official disposal site.

[lamont]

there used to be a grenade in the water up in lake crescent. i'm not sure if that one got disposed of or not, might still be there.

[girldiver]

And once again...I'm looking through my Open Water training materials and this one isn't covered. Crap.

Should I include "don't touch possible live ammunition underwater" in my Open Water classes...or do you think this is more of an Advanced skill?

Scary...

[lizard0924]

And once again...I'm looking through my Open Water training materials and this one isn't covered. Crap.

Should I include "don't touch possible live ammunition underwater" in my Open Water classes...or do you think this is more of an Advanced skill?

Scary...

I think there is probably a PADI specialty course and c-card for this.

[selkie]

PADI EOD c card

[mjachetta]

Lamont,

I have seen them in Lake Crescent too,

[Mongodives]

Don't touch any UXO (unexploded Ordinance) and remember where it was and take pictures so it can be reported, was part of every dive brief I received or gave in Okinawa. Didn't think UXO would be a local condition to be aware of here.

[lamont]

Lamont,

I have seen them in Lake Crescent too,

The one I saw was at the wall dive along the southwest(?) side. Head back towards south beach, around 25 mins and around 40 feet i think. That was 3-4 years ago...

[ktb]

I think that one was picked up and found to be a training dummy. Although I still can't believe the person actually grabbed it. (No, it wasn't someone on the board.)

[WASP7000]

PADI EOD c card

Do you know anyone in Olympia that does this course? I don't have enough useless cards in my wallet.

[lamont]

I think that one was picked up and found to be a training dummy. Although I still can't believe the person actually grabbed it. (No, it wasn't someone on the board.)

well, glad that it turned out to be a dummy...

i'm not going near any grenades in the water to check, though.... hydrostatic shock will pulverize your insides if it goes off...

[ORDiver]

Although I still can't believe the person actually grabbed it. (No, it wasn't someone on the board.)

I'm the dumb guy that probably would have picked it up. It would probably be on the shelf at my house next to the other weird crap I find in the water. However, after reading this post, I will never pick up munitions underwater.

[sitkadiver]

I was diving around the causeway here a few years ago and thought I had found an old artillery shell. The cause way has tons of military scrap from WWII scattered all over the bottom and a few bunkers still intact for your exploring pleasure.

Anyway, the casing I found was about 2 1/2 feet long and made of copper or something that tarnishes green, and inside there was another smaller container that was threaded into the narrow end of the thing. I assumed the other threaded container was an intact detonator so I banged on it with a rock. Nothing happened though and it turned out to be an old fire extinguisher.