Mumbai:
Officials from the Navy Armament Depot will visit Mumbai harbour today to chalk out a plan to defuse a World War II bomb found there during dredging operations on Thursday.
The 21-inches-long and seven-inches-wide metal case, packed with around 45 kilograms of explosives, has been stored at an isolated location in the Mumbai Port Trust premises. It was found off Cross Islands on Thursday afternoon.
"Labourers of Jaisu Shipping Company were operating a dredger near Cross Islands when they stumbled upon the shell after their boat suddenly stopped functioning. When they checked, they saw the large cylinder-shaped metal that was obstructing the dredger. They alerted the port authorities who in turn alerted us," said Pandurang Dhoke, senior inspector at Yellow Gate police station.
As the city police did not have the expertise to defuse the shell, the Naval Armament Depot was asked for help. The Navy Armament Depot has its own bomb detection and disposal squad. It will first try to dismantle and later defuse the shell.
The bomb was retrieved at Cross Islands, the same site where the historic 1944 blast took place, when a British ship SS Fort Stikine, carrying gold and explosives, caught fire. Around 700 people lost their lives, 28 ships were damaged and the fire had raged for three days.
The explosions were so powerful that gold bars were found all over the accident site - some even as far as two kilometres away - near the St Xavier's School.
(With PTI inputs)
The 21-inches-long and seven-inches-wide metal case, packed with around 45 kilograms of explosives, has been stored at an isolated location in the Mumbai Port Trust premises. It was found off Cross Islands on Thursday afternoon.
"Labourers of Jaisu Shipping Company were operating a dredger near Cross Islands when they stumbled upon the shell after their boat suddenly stopped functioning. When they checked, they saw the large cylinder-shaped metal that was obstructing the dredger. They alerted the port authorities who in turn alerted us," said Pandurang Dhoke, senior inspector at Yellow Gate police station.
As the city police did not have the expertise to defuse the shell, the Naval Armament Depot was asked for help. The Navy Armament Depot has its own bomb detection and disposal squad. It will first try to dismantle and later defuse the shell.
The bomb was retrieved at Cross Islands, the same site where the historic 1944 blast took place, when a British ship SS Fort Stikine, carrying gold and explosives, caught fire. Around 700 people lost their lives, 28 ships were damaged and the fire had raged for three days.
The explosions were so powerful that gold bars were found all over the accident site - some even as far as two kilometres away - near the St Xavier's School.
(With PTI inputs)
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