Bomb squad called in after live WWII artillery washes up on Cape Cod

WELLFLEET, Mass., July 24 (UPI) -- A portion of the beach in Cape Cod had to be sectioned off from vacationers after what's believed to be a live World War II-era military projectile washed up on the shore.

At roughly 3 p.m. Wednesday, a fisherman on Marconi Beach in Wellfleet, Mass. discovered a 14-inch 10 mm round buried in wet sand. Knowing the area used to be a World War II-era military hub, local police and firefighters were contacted; eventually the Massachusetts State Police bomb squad had to be brought in.

"I was excited," 23-year-old Liam Pheifer told the Cape Cod Times. "I wanted to take it home actually."

Pheifer examined the explosive after his friend's father discovered it, reburying it upon realizing the potential danger and need for authorities.

Sgt. Jerry Galizio of the state police bomb squad first examined the object in the beach's parking lot after excavating it, where he determined that it may in fact be live. Galizio and the artillery returned to the beach around 7 p.m., where the bomb squad established a thousand-foot perimeter for detonation.

The object was detonated with a loud bang to the cheers of onlookers, and based on the color of the smoke, Galizio says the explosive was indeed live.