Here, take these bullets: North Bend sheriff's deputies dispose of aging ammo with a bang
March 1, 2013 · 2:04 PM
When most of our trash gets collected, it’s uneventful. The stuff gets squashed into a truck, then dumped in a landfill. But when some of our more unusual waste is disposed of, it creates fireworks—for example, when ammunition gets dropped at the North Bend Sheriff’s substation, as occasionally happens.
“Generally, we blow it up,” says North Bend’s Police Chief Mark Toner.
We in this case, is not the deputies at the substation, but the King County Sheriff’s bomb squad, which destroys old bullets collected from the community, on its training range.
The department can also take old dynamite if it’s stable enough, Toner said, but if a resident has any questions about the safety of something, they should call the station, at (425) 888-4433.
Deputies will come to a caller’s home to assess the danger, he said. “We may even call the bomb squad to come and pick it up… We may blow it up in place -- not in your closet, obviously—if we deem it too unstable to transport.”
Most old bullets are stable and inert, Toner said. “I’ve never heard of a bullet going off just sitting on the shelf.”
There’s no special requirements for transporting old bullets to the substation, beyond common sense. Toner recommends putting the items in the trunk of your vehicle, or as far away from you as possible.
Comment on this story.
So keep your comments:
- Civil
- Smart
- On-topic
- Free of profanity
We ask that all participants own their words by logging in with their Facebook account. It's a simple process that will take seconds and helps keep our comments free of trolls, cranks, and “drive-by” commenters. We reserve the right to remove comments from anyone using screen names, pseudonyms or false identities. Please refer to our Terms of Use for full detail on participating on our site.
