Suspected Grenade On Front Lawn Shuts Down Columbus County Road

A quiet stretch of West County Road 650N in Bartholomew County suddenly turned into a no-go zone on Saturday after a resident spotted what looked like a hand grenade sitting on his lawn. Deputies shut down the road between East Street and Depot Street, just outside Columbus, and kept it blocked while explosive ordnance specialists headed to the scene.

Bomb Squad Called To Check Out Mysterious Device

Deputies brought in the Columbus bomb squad and closed the area to all traffic while technicians worked to identify and secure the object, according to The Republic. The outlet published photos from the Bartholomew County Sheriff's Office showing deputies on scene and reported that the shutdown was expected to last an unknown amount of time.

County Plan Guides Hazard Response Playbook

Bartholomew County's emergency planning focuses on keeping people away from potentially dangerous scenes and coordinating with specialized teams until any threat is made safe. The county's Multi-Hazard Mitigation Plan lays out how officials identify hazards, control perimeters and work across agencies during incidents involving hazardous materials or suspicious ordnance, according to Bartholomew County.

What Residents Are Urged To Do

Officials told residents to steer clear of the area, avoid touching or moving anything that looks suspicious and call local law enforcement to report any such finds while the scene remained active and technicians worked, per The Republic. This story will be updated if deputies or the sheriff's office release more details.