Here is what not to do….This gentleman was drilling a dug and unexploded Civil War Artillery Projectle and BOOM….He is still alive? Read on….from the Chattanooga Times Free Press.Civil War casualty[/b][/size]
Relic explodes, injures Dalton man
By Lauren Gregory Staff Writer
A local Civil War enthusiast remained in critical condition at Erlanger hospital Tuesday after attempting to defuse a cannon shell that an explosives expert said likely was "just as live today as the day (it was) shot."
Lawrence Christopher, 63, was working in an outbuilding at his Dalton, Ga., home on Monday when the explosion occurred, according to reports from the Whitfield County Sheriff’s Office. His grandson, Josh Locke, had been helping him, reports stated.
Both victims were taken to Hamilton Medical Center in Dalton, where the grandson was treated and released. Mr. Christopher then was airlifted to Erlanger in Chattanooga, hospital officials confirmed.
Immediately after the accident, emergency workers called a U.S. Department of Defense unit from Fort Benning, Ga., to inspect several more live explosive devices, the sheriff’s office reported. Those devices were taken to a remote location Tuesday and destroyed.
W.V. Ridley, who lives near Mr. Christopher on Tammy Drive, said he heard a loud explosion while mowing his yard Monday afternoon, and soon after a neighbor called him for help. He found Mr. Christopher with severe head wounds and fingers dangling from his hand.
Mr. Christopher and his grandson had been drilling a hole in the Civil War-era relic to flush out the powder inside, friend and fellow history buff Marvin Sowder said.
Mr. Christopher had perfected that process after practicing it "hundreds of times," Mr. Sowder said.
Officials did not comment Tuesday on whether the projectile was recovered locally.
Mr. Sowder called the resulting explosion a "freakish accident." He said Mr. Christopher sells items he obtains from "all over the country" on the Internet to make a living and is known in some circles as "the Godfather of relics."
Mr. Sowder, equally passionate about the era, said he never would dare attempt to defuse an explosive shell himself.
Neither would Chris Tolbert, special agent in charge of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation’s Calhoun office, who said the shell likely was "just as live today as the day (it was) shot."
Joseph Kennedy, resident agent in charge of the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives office in Chattanooga, also said he would not attempt to defuse such a projectile.
"The best thing to do is leave it alone," Mr. Tolbert said.
He said such explosives are filled with black powder, a substance that remains extremely heat- and friction-sensitive indefinitely if not exposed to moisture. The GBI’s bomb squad does not attempt to remove powder from such devices, he added, opting instead to destroy them with a remote device.
Mr. Kennedy advises those who might come across a piece of ammunition with an uncertain history to take the precaution of calling local police or the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives’ bomb hotline.
"If a trained bomb technician won’t drill into a cannonball, a regular individual shouldn’t even think about it," he said.
The average Chattanooga-areaChattanooga - area Chattanoogaarea resident is not likely to happen upon a large piece of ammunition in a field, according to Hugh Odom, a ranger at the Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park in Fort Oglethorpe.
"It’s been 140-plus years now (since the Civil War)," he said. "You’re not going to find anything lying loose on the ground."
Since federal law prohibits collection of artifacts on national park land, the only way to collect Civil War artifacts would be to search private property with permission from the owner, Mr. Odom said.
But Mr. Kennedy cautioned that accidents can occur in established collections, as well.
"There’s no telling how many cannonballs are sitting on peoples’ bookshelves or mantles we don’t know about," he said. "Unfortunately, it’s only when things like this happen that we get a few calls."
