works on Assateague Island this
week after over 100 pieces of World
War II era unexploded ordnance
were discovered and then purpose-
fully detonated with at least two
explosions on Tuesday.
Beach area of the Assateague Is-
land National Seashore discovered
a single piece of interesting debris
on the beach and brought the dis-
covery to the attention of park rang-
ers. Park rangers were able to
quickly identify the strange artifact
as a piece of military ordnance left
over from the island's rich history as
a military test range.
to the island to investigate and
make an assessment of the discov-
ery. An examination of the site
where the debris was found reveal-
ed an extensive cache of World War
II military ordnance. The Ocean City
Bomb Squad determined the size,
scale and type of munitions discov-
ered on the beach were beyond its
protocol and the Emergency Ord-
nance Disposal (EOD) team from
Aberdeen Proving Ground was
brought in.
es of debris and unexploded ord-
nance. The items were then assem-
bled in two prepared sites for con-
trolled detonation. By early Tues-
day, the beach and parking lots at
the North Ocean Beach area on the
north end of the Assateague Island
National Seashore were evacuated
as the EOD team prepared for the
controlled detonation.
entrance at Bayberry Drive just a
mile or so from the foot of the Ver-
razano Bridge and the entrance to
the Assateague State Park. Traffic
backed up along the entrance road
to the state and national parks as
park rangers visited waiting traffic
vehicle by vehicle to alert visitors of
the situation. Around mid-day, the
EOD team detonated the first batch
of the old military ordnance on the
beach not far from where it was first
discovered. The explosion sent a
plume of sand high into the air over
the North Ocean Beach area.
the Verrazano Bridge was allowed
to start flowing into the national sea-
shore area, although the North
Ocean Beach area remained clos-
ed. Visitors were allowed to access
the Oversand Vehicle (OSV) area
and some of the camping areas far
removed from North Ocean Beach.
However, the site of the discovery