Emergency Services personnel were called to an eastside hotel after staff found what appeared to be a piece of military ordinance.
Owen Sound Police Service Inspector Stephen MacKinnon stated, “This morning (04Mar2016), at approximately 11:35 a.m. we received a phone call to attend the Days Inn after an employee found what appeared to be a hand grenade in a room. Another employee had subsequently taken it and placed it on the concrete walkway outside the east end of the building, which is where we found it.”
Members of the Owen Sound Fire & Emergency Services and the Grey County Paramedics assisted in blocking off the 900 block of 6th Street East while officers of the Owen Sound Police Service cordoned off the area and started their investigation. Staff and customers of the Days Inn were evacuated for their own safety, with the management staff doing their best to ensure the comfort of those guests who were affected.
Photographs of the object were taken and sent to bomb technicians from the Department of National Defence, as well as the Waterloo Regional Police Service, who were asked to provide assistance. At approximately 4:15 pm, two technicians from the DND attended the scene and removed the object.
“All information we had received – the size, weight, colour and markings on the object – were all consistent with a real hand grenade, which is why we took all necessary precautions to ensure everyone’s safety. The technicians have removed the object and will investigate to determine if it is a live grenade or if it is something else. We will be continuing our investigation into how the object came to be in the room, although at this very early stage there does not appear to be any malicious intent,” said MacKinnon.
The area and hotel were re-opened around 4:30 p.m.
