Wartime grenades found in garden

A bomb scare shattered the tranquillity of a quiet residential street in the Midlands this weekend after a resident discovered a hoard of wartime grenades in his back garden.

Fire crews and paramedics were dispatched to Belbroughton Road in Halesowen after Ian Cooke inadvertently disturbed the weapons stash, buried 12 inches below ground, while digging on Saturday afternoon. The army's bomb disposal experts were alerted and arrived around five hours later, finding 24 unexploded Self Igniting Grenades (SIGs).

With darkness upon them they were forced to return yesterday to remove and safely detonate the 'Molotov cocktails' glass bottles containing a volatile mix of phosphorus and benzene.

Residents were allowed to stay in their homes but a section of the street was cordoned off and homes evacuated for several hours the following day while controlled explosions were carried out in a council skip.

Residents in houses just outside the cordon were advised to keep windows and doors closed as fumes from the chemical mixture in the grenades can be harmful.

Six firefighters who responded to the call around 4pm on Saturdaywere taken to hospital for precautionary checks while Mr Cooke was examined at the scene.

He told how his shovel had "started smouldering" after smashing through one of the grenades.

The 28-year-old said: "I was digging holes to put some decking in and my shovel started smouldering. You don't expect your shovel to start smoking when you bring it out of the ground so I thought it was better to be safe than sorry.

"I got the non-emergency number for the fire brigade. The next thing you know we've got a fire engine and ambulances and the bomb squad is here."

Mr Cooke, who works for the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants, moved into the house with girlfriend Katie Harvey six months ago. HR manager Miss Harvey, also 28, said: "It has been surreal. I was at Tesco Express with my sister Sarah. When we got back Ian told us the fire crews were coming round."