Second World War mine blown up in Weymouth Bay (From Dorset Echo)

Second World War mine blown up in Weymouth Bay

8:00am Friday 12th March 2010 in

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ROYAL Navy explosive experts have blown up Second World War mine that was found in Portland Harbour.

Bomb disposal experts carried out a controlled explosion to destroy the one-ton German air-dropped ground mine yesterday.

It had been discovered during a routine shoreline survey of Portland Harbour earlier in the week.

It was lifted from the water but carefully replaced once it emerged exactly what the item was.

A 1,000-metre exclusion zone was introduced and the Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) team from Plymouth was alerted.

Experts had to wait until yesterday for improved weather conditions to carry out a controlled explosion in Weymouth Bay.

A one-mile exclusion zone was introduced yesterday when the mine was again lifted to the surface for destruction by the EOD team led by Chief Petty Officer Diver Kasapi.

The mine was then towed one mile outside of the harbour to a safe position and dispatched to the seabed where it was destroyed in Weymouth Bay.

CPO Kasapi said: “It was a German GG mine holding 726kg of explosives and we don’t see mines like that very often.

“Once it was lowered to the sea bed we dropped small charges around the area to scare any life away.

“We set five minutes on a safety fuse and then after the five minutes was up the mine exploded.

“Only one fish died and everything went safely and to plan so that was a good result.”

The EOD team began the destruction operation at 8am yesterday morning and the explosion took place at 2.50pm.

Lt-Cmdr Richard Talbot, the naval officer in charge of the unit, said it was a ‘significant item of ordnance’.

He said: “These things were put on an aircraft and dropped into the sea. They floated down on a parachute, which fell off when it hit the water.

"The mine then sank to the seabed and lay there until whatever vessel made it function.

"This could have been a naval vessel or a merchant ship - some mines were dropped randomly."

“Lots of people ask how often you find these things. You can’t really answer that – it’s very random and we might not find anything else for six months now.”