World War II Practice Bomb Found on Fla.’s Pensacola Beach

A Florida woman’s decision to pick up an object at the beach resulted in the evacuation of her condominium after it was determined she found a World War II practice bomb.

In the 1940s, Santa Rosa Island was a bombing range. In the past few weeks, several devices have been discovered along Pensacola Beach, said Michael White, a detective with the State Fire Marshal’s Office.

As many as 10 explosive devices were found at the beach after Hurricane Ivan in 2004, White said.

“Every time we have a storm, people find them on the beach all the time,” he said. “It’s a fairly regular occurrence.”

Stacy Cook, 45, found a practice bomb last week and took it back to her condo. She didn’t know what she had found until she sent a picture of the object from her cell phone to her boyfriend.

Cook called the Navy. The Navy contacted Escambia County emergency dispatch, and Portofino Tower III was evacuated until the device was removed.

An Air Force team from Hurlburt Field later destroyed the device at a remote location on the island, White said.

Cook said she was glad it was she and not a child who picked up the bomb.

“I can envision one of my little grandkids picking it up and throwing it like a rock,” she told the Pensacola News Journal.

Information from: Pensacola News Journal,
http://www.pensacolanewsjournal.com