Second World War shell found in Shropshire shed
A family had a shock when they were clearing out an old shed – they found an unexploded shell from the Second World War.
Farmer Richard Perry and his daughter Julia Perry were sorting items in an old outbuilding at Fields House, Childs Ercall, near Newport, on Sunday afternoon when they made they made their explosive discovery.
The house belonged to Mr Perry's late father-in-law, Harry Hawryluk, who died in 2011.
He had lived at the detached home for 40 years and used the outbuilding to store farm food.
Unsure what the rusty cylinder they found in the outbuilding was, Mr Perry picked it up and placed it on a chest of drawers to take a picture.
Concerned, the pair decided to send a photo to the police – who immediately sent a bomb disposal team round.
A controlled explosion was then carried out.
Officers informed them that the rusty cylinder was in fact a 155mm World War Two shell.
Miss Perry said: "We have been clearing the property for a number of weeks because it's up for sale.
"We were working in the shed when we came across this thing in the corner.
"My dad is a farmer so he knows what tractor parts look like, so he knew it wasn't that.
"We looked on the internet but couldn't really find anything similar.
"We rang the police and sent them a picture.
"They sent the bomb disposal team round straight away.
"We were gobsmacked. You don't expect to find a bomb in a shed.
"We have no idea how long it had been there and we can't believe we were handling it."
The device was about 20cms long and was heavy, Miss Perry said.
The bomb disposal team evacuated the area, including a nearby farm, and carried out a safe explosion.
Miss Perry was not allowed to be in the area at the time, but officers told her that the explosion made a loud bang.
Neighbours were told what was going on to ensure there was no panic after the explosion.
A search of the rest of the property was carried out to make sure there were no more explosives.
Miss Perry added: "The house is in between two airfields, so whether it has come from there, we don't know."
Mr Perry's wife, Marion, lived in the detached house in the 1970s with her father before getting married.
"I haven't a clue where it came from," she said.
"The officers said it could've gone off at any time so it doesn't bear thinking about what could have happened. It's worrying to think that it was sitting there all that time."
The bomb had a brass pin sticking out of the top, which would have been used to set a timer for an explosion.
Chris Ammonds, a spokesman for West Mercia Police, said a military bomb disposal team left the scene just before 7.15pm.
