We played catch with a live grenade – and lived to tell the tale
FEW people would willingly play catch with a live grenade.
But that’s exactly what James Oliver and Connor Maher did – although they didn’t realise it the time.
Mr Oliver, 24, who runs a waste removal business on Jersey, found what he thought was a fake grenade while emptying a house and lobbed it at Mr Maher, 22, for a laugh.
His colleague caught it and the pair threw it back and forth for fun, before putting the grenade into their van, where it remained all day while they drove around working.
‘We didn’t think it was real,’ said Mr Oliver. Later in the day, though, he was horrified to discover that it was live after showing it to a friend who is an honorary police officer.
‘When he saw it he immediately put cones around the van and called the police and a bomb disposal officer,’ said Mr Oliver. ‘It was a bit of a shock when I realised it was real.
‘The bomb disposal officer said that we had done the right thing to call, but told us that taking it on an island tour in the van was not a great idea.’
Bomb disposal officer Stuart Elliott, who was dispatched to deal with the grenade, said: ‘It was on the front seat of the van. It was in good condition. It was a French First World War grenade – they were used by the Germans during the Second World War.
‘I got it taped up to make it secure. I removed it to another location, put a small charge on it and destroyed it.’
Mr Oliver has since been in touch with the owners of the house to tell them about his find.
‘They didn’t know anything about the grenade,’ he said. ‘They think someone put it in there.’