My close grenade encounter.

A while ago I went on a trip with my school. We travelled to grave sites and other such landmarks, including the somme front line trenches. We ate our lunch in a small forested area, and as i was tucking in to a cheese sandwich, a girl sitting next to me suddenly screamed. It appeared we were all sitting next to a couple of grenades. Whether they were live or not - I cant say, but our school had a shouting match with the front office of the site. Twas a close one.

 

Mmmm, if something, that is a couple of grenades have been sat in one spot for 90 odd years then siting down next to them doesn't hold much danger. Picking them up and playing with them does of course hold many more dangers.

Despite the chances of the grenades being very likely to be live, as all ammunition or weaponry should be assumed to be unles proved otherwise, I think the 'risk' has been emphasised for dramatic effect here. May I suggest a career in litrature, or even the tabloids?

A close one? Maybe? But you never know it was really a close one until sombody else gets hurt. You all manged to eat your sandwiches somewhere else.

 

Mmmm, if something, that is a couple of grenades have been sat in one spot for 90 odd years then siting down next to them doesn't hold much danger. Picking them up and playing with them does of course hold many more dangers.

Despite the chances of the grenades being very likely to be live, as all ammunition or weaponry should be assumed to be unles proved otherwise, I think the 'risk' has been emphasised for dramatic effect here. May I suggest a career in litrature, or even the tabloids?

A close one? Maybe? But you never know it was really a close one until sombody else gets hurt. You all manged to eat your sandwiches somewhere else.

Funny that you should suggest such a career, I am currently writing a fantasy novel. I dont think any of us had the idea of picking them up and playing with them in mind. And yes we ate our sandwiches next to what appeared to be some sort of medical facility.

 

Lol, good one Well I think we all had to eat cheese, but when the teacher's attention was averted, we were drinking beer from our rucksacks... I was young.

 

Mmmm, if something, that is a couple of grenades have been sat in one spot for 90 odd years then siting down next to them doesn't hold much danger. Picking them up and playing with them does of course hold many more dangers.

Despite the chances of the grenades being very likely to be live, as all ammunition or weaponry should be assumed to be unles proved otherwise, I think the 'risk' has been emphasised for dramatic effect here. May I suggest a career in litrature, or even the tabloids?

A close one? Maybe? But you never know it was really a close one until sombody else gets hurt. You all manged to eat your sandwiches somewhere else.

Be very, very, very careful if you encounter unexploded ordnance on the Western Front. The French Army still conducts the "Iron Harvest" every year, hauling off and disposing unexploded shells found by farmers and developers. According to what I've read, that stuff is considered highly dangerous, because the chemicals and explosives in them corrode and decay over the decades. Apparently they are still causing fatalities and serious injuries.

If you find such ordnance, do not handle it...tell your tour leader or the local authorities.

 

Oh but the french take such great precations :P They scatter a few sheep around to keep the grass short and perhaps explode a few devices.

 

Unexploded ordanance is very dangerous. When I was in the Army a leautenant and a private picked up a grenade (they think) at a training area that had been used since WW2 and blew each other to hell.

 

Oh but the french take such great precations :P They scatter a few sheep around to keep the grass short and perhaps explode a few devices.

Minced lamb........love it!

 

Unexploded ordanance is very dangerous. When I was in the Army a leautenant and a private picked up a grenade (they think) at a training area that had been used since WW2 and blew each other to hell.

Surely a Lieutenant would not pick up an unexploded ordanance!

The saying "A gun is always loaded" surely applies here too.

It is like coming across a snake and picking it up to see if it bites!

 

Despite the chances of the grenades being very likely to be live, as all ammunition or weaponry should be assumed to be unles proved otherwise,

PP.

You would be closer to the knowledge here!

What is the accident rate with weaponry (apart from aged ordanace) in the forces?

Scarce or not?

 

I don' have any exact figures at hand, but ammunition accident rates in the forces are very low, but still exist. Most 'accidents' occur when a munition is being misused (ie. illegally modified or tampered with) or malfunction during use (ie faulty ammunition or weapon system). Ammunition is by it's very nature dangerous and you will never get the accident rate down to zero. You can go a long way towards this by doing the correct checks, proper ammunition handling and weapon drills.

My first point about the grenades being reasonably safe if left alone stands. If a munition has sat there for 60-80 years it is unlikely to do anyone any harm if left where it is and not disturbed. Leave it alone, mark the location and report it, so the authorities can deal with it. Screaming, making a fuss and 'bigging up' the danger is all a little melodramatic, childish and unnecessary.

 

I clear UXO for a living ,and my advise is if you dont know what it is dont touch it ,and if you do know what it is you should know not to touch it .as was correctly said before report immediately to the authoritys (police etc ) and give them the location.

 

Alas, we are cursed with human curiosity. Although I am sure that does not extend to juggling grenades. Not for most of us anyway

 

Minced lamb........love it!
Makes a change from setting fire to it. Then again it's French lamb, not British my mistake.

 

Alas, we are cursed with human curiosity. Although I am sure that does not extend to juggling grenades. Not for most of us anyway
You are correct about human curiosity,although i now work clearing uxo to make places safer for people ,when i was about 13 my dad caught me coming home from a mornings scavenging on an old range near where we used to live with a live artillery projectile.He carefully took it off me and notified the police who got the bomb disposal guys out to it...I didnt dare tell him we had been throwing it over a wall to see what would happen

 

You are correct about human curiosity,although i now work clearing uxo to make places safer for people ,when i was about 13 my dad caught me coming home from a mornings scavenging on an old range near where we used to live with a live artillery projectile.He carefully took it off me and notified the police who got the bomb disposal guys out to it...I didnt dare tell him we had been throwing it over a wall to see what would happen

Lol, that must have been sketchy. Then again - if it had survived being thrown over a wall, wouldent that mean irs chances of exploding while being still are rather small? Or could it still have blown up just as easily?

 

Think i was lucky ,much of the ordnance i come across today is externally in poor condition and looks like it wouldnt be capable of detonation,but internally it is like new especially mills grenades which we blow in situ whenever possible.Its just not worth risking injury (if your lucky) or worse death.The pics show some 3" mortar rounds which look harmless but are just coated in 60 years of compacted muck and rust ,the spring and striker are from a mills grenade we blew ,on this grenade the safety pin and lever were missing either rotted away or it had malfunctioned when thrown i was lucky enough to find these bits after, the spring was still strong and springy and very capable of working.

 

I know the feeling of wanting to blow things up.... how did you protect yourselves from the shrapnel?

 

We follow strict safety guidelines which state minimum distances for carrying ordnance demolition procedures,using either cable or other devices to initiate the charges we use (sorry i cant go into more detail for safety/security reasons)........spotter