Nazaré fishermen trawled the catch of a lifetime this morning: an unexploded bomb with a blast equivalent to 600 kgs of TNT.
As we write this story, the port of Nazaré is closed while naval explosives experts work out the best solution for disabling the device.
Belief is that it will be floated back out to sea, and then ‘exploded’ at a depth of at least 20 metres.
For the moment, the area has been sealed off with a 300 metre perimeter.
Media reports explain the bomb was only detected once the contents of trawling nets had been released onto the deck of “Mar Salgado” early this morning.
Maritime authorities have since identified the device as having a charge of 206 kilos of H6 – “a military explosive corresponding to 600 kilos of TNT”, explains Jornal de Notícias.
An official source told the paper that the bomb “appears to be of the type normally released by aircraft and it may originate from the Second World War”.
Making its disposal even more complicated is the “elevated degree of corrosion” involved.
The device is described as measuring 1.6 metres, and apparently has no ‘identifying’ characteristics (words/ numbers, etc).
