Old rusted rocket found in Seattle man’s backyard is revealed to be inert NUCLEAR missile after bomb squad was sent in to investigate
- The rocket was presented as a donation to a military museum in Ohio
- Museum staff contacted authorities in Bellevue, who sent a bomb squad
- The device turned out to be a missile designed to carry a nuclear warhead
An old rusted rocket found in a Seattle resident’s backyard has been identified as an inert nuclear missile.
The missile was presented as a donation to a military museum in Ohio, which then contacted authorities in Bellevue.
A bomb squad was sent to the man’s home to investigate the device he offered and discovered that it was an unguided air-to-air missile designed to carry a 1.5 kiloton nuclear warhead.
But no warhead was attached, meaning it posed no threat to the community.
The man who discovered the rocket in his backyard wants to remain anonymous because he is “extremely irritated” by the media reporting and was surprised that the museum had reported his donation offer to the police.
An old rusted rocket found in a Seattle resident’s backyard has been identified as an inert nuclear missile
A bomb squad was sent to the man’s home to investigate the device and discovered that it was an unguided air-to-air missile designed to carry a 1.5 kiloton nuclear warhead.
Bellevue police said the weapon “is in fact a Douglas AIR-2 Genie (formerly MB-1), an unguided air-to-air missile designed to carry a 1.5-kiloton W25 warhead.”
A spokesperson added that it is “basically just a gas tank for rocket fuel,” while describing the discovery as “not serious at all.”
“Our bomb squad member even asked me why we were putting out a press release about a rusted piece of metal,” he said.
The National Museum of the US Air Force reported the resident’s donation offer to authorities and he “did not expect a call from us,” police said.
“He was kind enough to let us take a look at it and we determined it was safe,” a police spokesman said.
The man told police it belonged to a neighbor who recently died and was originally purchased at an estate sale.
Authorities in Bellevue received a call from the National Museum of the United States Air Force in Ohio reporting the offer of an unusual donation.
No warhead was attached, meaning it posed no threat to the community. Pictured: Similar AIR-2 Genie missile with a replica nuclear warhead attached
It subsequently turned out to be an ‘artifact without an explosion hazard’.
“Because the object was inert and the army did not ask for it back, the police left the object with a neighbor to have it restored and put on display in a museum,” police said.
There was never any suspicion that a nuclear warhead might be attached to the missile, so there was no need to evacuate the city, which has a population of 150,000.
The Genie missile was used during the Cold War, according to the US and Canada Seattle Times.
It was fired only once in 1957 and production was stopped in 1962.
DailyMail.com has contacted the Bellevue Police Department and the National Museum of the United States Air Force for comment.