More than 170 unexploded World War II-era practice bombs have been found beneath a children’s playground in Wooler, Northumberland.
According to reports, the first bomb was discovered on January 14, when construction workers digging foundations for new play structures at Scotts Park playground uncovered a suspicious object. A second bomb surfaced the next day, prompting officials to halt construction and call in Brimstone Site Investigations, a private bomb disposal firm, for a thorough search.
On the first day of the survey, Brimstone reportedly found 65 additional practice bombs, each weighing about 10 pounds. By the second day, 90 more bombs had been recovered, leading authorities to expand the search.
Despite being classified as practice bombs, officials said that the devices contained explosive charges, including smoke cartridges and detonator bursters, making them potentially dangerous.
In an interview with the BBC, Councillor Mark Mather suggested the area may have served as a Home Guard training ground, attracting army officers from across the country.
The Home Guard was a civilian militia tasked with defending Britain from German invasion.
“After the war, it looked like they just buried all the ordnance in one of the pits,” he said.
So far, only a third of the playground has been cleared. Officials expect clearance operations to continue into April 2025, with the hope that construction on the playground can resume later in the spring.
