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By Steve Almasy
CNN
It’s a really unusual day when state authorities have to call the Navy’s Explosive Ordnance Disposal team.
But when there’s what looks like a mine floating in a bay not far from a marina, that’s what you do.
While people on land were told to stay inside, the Coast Guard on Tuesday set up a safety zone and Navy divers went into Port Orchard Bay in Puget Sound in Washington to lasso the big, round, rusted object with metal prongs bobbing in the water.
“Upon initial inspection, the unidentified moored mine was found to have decades of marine growth,” the Navy said.
The mine broke loose from its anchor, spokeswoman Sheila Murray said.
The crew began towing the mine away, an operation that lasted into the evening.
The Navy said the object was discovered by the Washington State Department of Natural Resources.
“The updated area to shelter in place is along the shorelines from the Brownsville Marina to Keyport to the Agate Pass Bridge on both sides of the water,” the Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office said. “Bring pets inside and stay off the beaches. The waterways in the area are closed.”
The US Coast Guard established a 1,500-yard safety zone around the unexploded ordnance, Coast Guard spokeswoman Ali Flockerzi said.