Grenade found by boys at reservoir

A visit to a beauty spot by two young brothers and their grandparents could have had a nasty ending after the youngsters stumbled upon a hand grenade.

The decades-old ammunition was discovered by Bloxwich boys Luke and Matthew Little on the exposed bed of a drained section of Chasewater. A specialist Army disposal unit was called in to remove the grenade, which is believed to date back to the Second World War.

Luke, aged nine, and Matthew, 11, were visiting Chasewater Country Park with grandparents, Pam and John Golder, when they spotted the hand grenade.

The boys told Chasewater's rangers. They immediately notified the police, who called in the specialist disposal unit.

Luke and Matthew said: "It was really exciting to find the hand grenade. We were careful not to go near it, and told the staff about it as soon as we saw it."

Councillor Val Richards, Lichfield District Council's cabinet member for leisure services, said: "As we're draining the water out of the reservoir, as part of the major improvement works to Chasewater's eastern dam, it is revealing lots of interesting finds.

"It is really important that if anyone suspects that they might have found what looks like a bomb, or any other kind of ammunition, that they don't go near it."

Two Second World War bombs were found earlier in the year at Chasewater.

People are also being warned to stay off the mud on the reservoir bed as it could be very deep.