Zurich swimmers find live hand grenade on riverbed

Two decorative, inert hand grenades that prompted the evacuation of the Federal Building in Sarnia, Ont. are seen on Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2013. Swimmers in a Zurich river bathing area spotted a live hand grenade on Thursday, police in Switzerland’s biggest city said.(Const. Heather Emmons / Sarnia Police Service)

Swimmers in a Zurich river bathing area spotted a live hand grenade on Thursday, police in Switzerland’s biggest city said.

The device, from the former Yugoslavia, was recovered and detonated by experts. Nobody was injured.

Morning bathers at the Unterer Letten site reported seeing what looked like a hand grenade at the bottom of the River Limmat, police said.

Police divers conducted a reconnaissance mission and confirmed it was indeed a hand grenade. The device was around a metre away from the riverbank.

The Swiss army’s bomb disposal unit was called in, with two of their experts conducting another dive.

“They determined that it was a live hand grenade from the former Yugoslavia. It was recovered shortly after 3:30 pm,” police said.

During the recovery operation, police cordoned off the immediate area.

The Zurich Forensic Science Institute took the hand grenade away in a specialised vehicle for detonation in a controlled explosion, the police said.