Army to detonate
hazardous WWII shell

No threat is feared from the
Schofield firing range discovery

Army explosive experts plan to detonate a 4-inch World War II mortar shell tomorrow that was found last month on a remote Schofield Barracks firing range.

Capt. Kathy Turner, Army spokeswoman, said the mortar round is suspected to contain phosgene, an industrial chemical used to make pesticides and plastics. The round is fused and not considered safe to be removed, she said. A 155 mm artillery shell, also suspected of containing phosgene, was also found.

Phosgene, a poisonous gas, was used as a choking agent in World War I chemical warfare munitions.

Turner said the two World War II munitions were discovered last month during a routine clearing of one of Schofield Barracks' impact ranges. The mortar round remains near the base of the Waianae mountain range and a mile from any military housing.

"It is currently being protected," she said.

Turner said the nearest civilian community is Wahiawa, about four miles from the range.

Army officials do not believe the mortar round "poses any danger to local civilian or military communities."

The 155 mm artillery shell is not fused, so it was moved from the impact area in what Turner described as a "multiround container" and transported for storage at an ammunition storage bunker at Wheeler Army Air Field.

Army officials are studying what to do with the 155 mm projectile.

The two munitions were assessed by a team from the 22nd Chemical Battalion from Aberdeen Proving Grounds in Maryland. The same Army unit responded to the recent discovery of glass ampuls found in a home on Maunalani Heights and at a Sand Island business. The 22nd Chemical Battalion responds to any situation involving military munitions. The Army chemical experts determined that the glass vials contained a common pesticide, methyl bromide.