Putnam County Sheriff Discovers Military Mortar Rounds on Hoarded Property
Putnam County Sheriff Howard Sills called in a U.S. Air Force Explosive Ordnance Disposal team from Robins Air Force Base to detonate old military mortar rounds discovered on Clubhouse Road in the Crooked Creek community, msgrnews.com reported. The explosives were found on Saturday afternoon by an off-duty Putnam County Fire Department firefighter who was walking the sprawling property to provide a cleanup estimate for the new owner. The former owner operated as a hoarder, leaving behind thousands of cement blocks, tires, hundreds of bicycles, and two old school buses.
Robins Air Force Base Team Handles Detonation
Sheriff Sills initially contacted the Bibb County Sheriff’s Office Bomb Squad, whose deputies responded to the scene and identified the objects as military mortar rounds. Because state and federal protocols require specialized military handling for ordnance, Sills requested assistance from the Robins Air Force Base EOD unit. Before the detonation, Sills noted that the property sits far off the road and encompasses enough acreage that a controlled explosion would not threaten nearby residences. The Air Force team dug a deep trench, placed the mortar rounds inside, and covered them with heavy sandbags to contain flying shrapnel. The military specialists successfully detonated the explosives at approximately 2:30 p.m.
Frequently Asked Questions About the Clubhouse Road Incident
Who found the mortar rounds on Clubhouse Road?
An off-duty Putnam County Fire Department firefighter discovered the military explosives while walking the property to provide a cleanup estimate for the new property owner.
Which military installation provided the bomb squad?
A U.S. Air Force Explosive Ordnance Disposal team from Robins Air Force Base responded to the scene to handle the detonation.
Were any area residents evacuated during the operation?
No evacuations took place because the property sits far off the road and the EOD team contained the blast using a deep trench and heavy sandbags.
An earlier report from the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office indicated that only two mortar rounds had been located during the initial inspection of the property before the military ordnance team arrived.
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