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Man finds grenade while doing yard work: ‘I hit something really hard’

Posted at 7:29 AM, Apr 27, 2016
and last updated 2016-04-27 07:29:34-04

RICHMOND, Va. — The bomb squad responded to a Richmond home after a resident made a shocking find while doing yard work Tuesday afternoon.

Joe Priester said he discovered a grenade around 2:30 p.m. while using an ax to clear ivy near the bottom of a tree. He said he actually hit the grenade a couple times with the blade, according to WTVR.

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“I was on one of the trees and I was hitting towards the base and I hit something really hard,” he said. “I pull it out and I’m looking at it and I can’t believe what I’m seeing . . . it looked like a grenade.”

Police and bomb squad officers responded to the home along the 3400 block of Keighly Rd., near Jefferson Davis Highway. When law enforcement officials arrived, they determined the grenade was most likely live.

“It could have gone off, presumably,” Priester said.

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Police were on the scene for over 5 hours and blocked off the street from oncoming traffic. The bomb squad removed the grenade from the yard using a robot. No one was hurt during the incident.

It’s not yet clear how the explosive device ended up in the bushes.