Old hand grenade stirs alarm

ANTIPOLO CITY — Authorities here reported that workers at a construction site in Victoria Valley Subdivision here unearthed an old hand grenade while preparing to set the foundations of a new house.

Fear, however, ensued after the potentially unstable device was transported to the homeowners' association office instead of leaving it where it was found.

The subdivision's security officer-in-charge Harold Gonzales said that following the discovery, they immediately called the police to remove the device as there was a good chance the grenade was still "live" despite being buried for an undetermined number of years.

It was later identified as an MK-2 fragmentation grenade, also known as "pineapple grenade," which was commonly used by the United States forces and its allies throughout the 20th century.

Police Master Sgt. Rudy Saballero, who led the Explosive Ordnance Disposal team, told subdivision authorities to advise construction workers against handling old munitions that they may uncover in the course of their jobs.

"There have been numerous cases where vintage grenades, mortar shells, and bombs have exploded because of improper handling. It is best to just leave them alone and report it to the police so they can be removed safely," Saballero said.

He also reminded subdivision officials to carefully perform a more thorough search on the site where the grenade was located as such items are often part of a larger cache.

The bomb experts then placed the unexploded grenade inside a sand-filled container before transporting it out of the neighborhood.