3-year-old discovers live World War II grenade in front yard
Sep 30, 2025, 3:01 PM | Updated: 3:59 pm
A photo of the live World War Two grenade found in Hartline. (Photo courtesy of the Grant County Sheriff's Office)
(Photo courtesy of the Grant County Sheriff's Office)
A three-year-old boy found a live hand grenade, similar to those used in World War II, in the front yard of his family’s home in Hartline Monday.
The hand grenade was found in the 600 block of Willard Street, the Grant County Sheriff’s Office (GCSO) announced.
The Washington State Patrol (WSP) bomb squad responded to the scene and safely disposed of the live hand grenade.
“An unexploded ordinance like that is a problem. An unexploded device, certainly due to its age, made it more unstable,” GCSO spokesman Kyle Foreman said.
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Boy finds World War II grenade, prompts bomb squad response
After the young boy found the grenade, he brought it inside his home to show it to his parents. The parents immediately called 911 at approximately 6:45 p.m.
The WSP bomb squad was then notified, and its assistance was requested. WSP bomb technicians determined the grenade was live and carefully removed the device to a rural area north of Hartline, where it was then disposed of.
“The grenade was of a type used during the Second World War and had clearly been exposed to the elements for some time,” GCSO stated.
It is unknown how the grenade ended up in the family’s front yard, and authorities haven’t said how long it had been there.
“What we’ve seen in the past is that grandpa goes to fight in the war, in World War II, and brings some souvenirs back, puts them in the house and no one sees them until grandpa passes and they have to go through grandpa’s house and that’s where a lot of grenades and other devices that we encounter here in Grant County. Where this one came from, how long it’s been there, nobody knows,” Kyle Foreman explained.
Foreman has advice for anyone who finds a grenade or other potentially explosive devices in or around their home.
“Leave it alone. Keep people away from it. Call 911, let the professionals come out and assess it and take care of that problem,” he said.
Contributing: James Lynch, KIRO Newsradio
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