Graham Bettelly, 69, was clearing out his attic as part of a series of renovations at his Offington Drive bungalow when he stumbled across what he thought was an innocent piece of military memorabilia.

"We'd seen it over the last few weeks and thought it was a wartime souvenir, a spent cartridge or something," said Mr Bettelly.

He brought the shell downstairs into his office, where a plasterer working at the home, Geoff Minton, became suspicious.

Mr Minton, a keen metal detectorist with experience of old munitions, told Mr Bettelly he believed the bomb was dangerous, and the police were called.

Bomb squad

A police officer attended the home and, after a radio conversation with senior officers, told Mr Bettelly that the bomb squad was on its way from Portsmouth and that the bomb itself should be moved outside.

The bomb squad duly arrived and quickly offered a verdict.

"The officer took one look and said 'that's a German incendiary bomb, full of magnesium, and it's live'," said Mr Bettelly, who since discovered that the bomb, which dated from 1942, may have carried an anti-tamper device which could have detonated if mishandled.

"It was a good job we didn't tamper with it and try to take it apart.

Shocked

"I was more than a bit shocked.

"To me, it just looked like it could be a wartime souvenir.

"It was only afterwards it dawned on us it could have gone off."

The bomb was taken to a military range in Guildford, where it was destroyed in a controlled explosion.

Chief Petty Officer Timothy "Sid" Lawrence said such bombs were quite common along the south coast.

He said: "They dropped a lot of them around here in the war, especially as planes flew past jettisoning stuff. It's one of those things."



-------------------------------------
Click here to go back to Worthing news.

Where are you? Add your pin to the Herald's international readers' map by clicking here.

Email the Herald: letters@worthingherald.co.uk

Click here for the Herald staff directory.

Want to read this page in French, German, Spanish, Portuguese, Urdu or 48 other languages? click here for Google translate.