Travelers on the Cape May-Lewes Ferry on the Delaware Bay faced nightmarish delays after an unexpected discovery shut down the waterway and forced the ferry to turn back.
An unexploded ordnance from World War II was discovered Monday evening, when it became visible in the canal during low tide. The Coast Guard mobilized to close the entire waterway as a precaution while they dealt with the threat.
Much to the chagrin of some passengers, the ferry vessel MV Delaware, carrying 70 passengers from Lewes, Delaware, to Cape May, New Jersey, was forced to turn back. Some passengers said they waited for hours, only to have to return home or to a hotel for the night. The Coast Guard kept the canal closed until daylight.
A bomb squad from Atlantic City was dispatched to “neutralize” the ordnance, according to the Cape May-Lewes Ferry.
Even unexploded ordnance dating back as far as the World War II era must be treated like dangerous explosives, because they very well could be. Many contain high-explosive fillers like TNT and ammonium nitrate, a substitute for TNT that is essentially obsolete today.
In a 2024 study published in the Royal Society of Chemistry, Norwegian defense researchers find that as they deteriorate over time, these explosive fillers can make the munitions more sensitive to external stimuli. They may become more susceptible to detonate when they are exposed to heat, shock, or friction. In some cases, studies find, World War II explosives have become even more sensitive to stress over the eight decades they have been lying discarded.
It’s not unheard of for unexploded ordnance to be found along the Atlantic Coast and in the Bay region. At Assateague Island National Seashore, at least seven military munitions washed up on the beach over the course of two weeks in summer 2022. The munitions had to be detonated to render them safe.
Watch video of the 2022 beach detonation here:
And in Dorchester County, Maryland, in 2020, a commercial waterman brought up an military ordnance while harvesting oysters on the Chesapeake Bay. It turned out to be an old military flare, but the State Fire Marshal Bomb Squad, the Dorchester County Sheriff’s Office, and EMS still had to respond as a precaution. With so many military installations and past testing grounds in the mid-Atlantic region, these discoveries are bound to happen.
The U.S. Department of Defense says that if you encounter unexploded ordnance or any kind of munitions, “the best way to avoid an incident is to learn and follow the 3Rs (Recognize, Retreat, and Report). Remember, if you encounter or think you have encountered a munition, do not approach, touch or disturb it, but call 911.
Once the most recent threat was rendered safe and disposed of, Cape May-Lewes Ferry operations were able to resume Tuesday morning in time for the 10:30 a.m departure. Ferry operators issued an apology for any inconvenience to riders.
