EGLIN AFB — The unexploded 500-pound bomb found near the Navy’s Explosive Ordnance Disposal school was safely disarmed Thursday morning.
The school was evacuated for two days while technicians determined how best to disarm the bomb, but it should reopen Friday, said Lois Walsh, a spokeswoman for Eglin Air Force Base.
The World War II-era bomb was detonated about 10 a.m., she said. It was discovered by a hunter on Monday afternoon about 150 yards from the school‘s property line.
The 96th Explosive Ordnance Disposal flight at Eglin, which has jurisdiction over disarming explosives in the area, cordoned off a one-mile section around the bomb site on Wednesday. The area had been reopened by about 2:45 p.m. Thursday.
The civilian community was not affected, Walsh said.
It is not uncommon to find unexploded ordnance on the vast expanse of the base’s reservation where testing and training have been taking place for many decades, she said.
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