It’s not every day that grenades are found lying around, and when we do hear about them, it’s usually a case of an inactive bomb that’s discovered during an airport security screening process. In a recent incident in Maryland, however, officials say that not only was a grenade found — by mere chance — under the pavement of a McDonald’s parking lot, but it was live.

The active, military-grade explosive was uncovered by a landscaping crew working in a McDonald’s parking lot over the weekend on a set of shrub’s near the restaurant’s entrance, reports the Frederick News-Post. The grenade was found lodged about a foot under the pavement, and appeared to have been there for a long time. Officials think it could be a relic of a military base nearby from several decades ago.

A bomb technician with the Office of the State Fire Marshal confirmed through an X-Ray scan that the grenade was still active. It was removed safely, with no injuries, in about two hours. It could’ve been a different story, however: the technician said if the grenade had gone off, anyone nearby could’ve been severely injured or killed. A close call for the landscaping crew, to be sure.

“If the guy operating the shovel machine had hit it, he would have been killed, no question,” the technician said.

The McDonald’s was evacuated, roads were closed and officials set a 50-foot perimeter in case of an explosion, with a further 600-foot barricaded buffer zone to keep folks far enough away to avoid any shrapnel. Customers at stores and restaurants in the vicinity were also asked to stay inside while the bomb was cleared.

The technician says the grenade has been secured. It’ll now go to the state fire marshal’s office, and then be handed over to the military for disposal.

Just to make sure everything is safe, officials said crews would check the area with metal detectors later this week to make sure the grenade hadn’t gone to McDonald’s with any bomb friends.

Live hand grenade found, safely removed from Thurmont McDonald’s parking lot [Frederick News-Post]

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