PAJARO DUNES, Calif. – A strange object washed ashore in the aftermath of massive surf along the California beaches last week.
The Santa Cruz Sheriff’s Office Bomb Team responded to a call on the afternoon of New Year’s Eve about an inert military ordnance found on the beaches of Pajaro Dunes in central California.
After using radiology photos to scan the device, bomb technicians determined it was inert and inactive.
The Bomb Team believe the ordnance may be a “practice bomb” from the 1960s.
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Due to the size of the ordnance and its degraded state, Travis Air Force Base was called to assist, the Sheriff’s Office noted. The Air Force base team then removed the bomb for future destruction.
The Santa Cruz Sheriff’s Office said they see old military ordinances wash up every few years, and they occasionally see sea flares uncovered.
“Sharing what our Bomb Team does and the different type of calls they respond to helps the community get a better understanding of how diverse our Sheriff’s Office is,” said Ashley Keehn, public information officer with the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office. “It also shows the importance of having the type of technology to be able to respond to these kinds of calls.”
The bomb was carried onshore as intense, high surf pummeled Santa Cruz County last week.
Repeated storms have churned up the waters of the Pacific, creating waves of 20 feet or greater.
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In the Santa Cruz County town of Capitola, beachgoers had to scramble to run away from the advancing waters.
Eight people were injured when a massive wave suddenly came ashore in Ventura County.
This week, large waves have returned to the Golden State’s shoreline, as High Surf Advisories are in place from San Diego to San Francisco through Thursday night.