Canadian military removes live artillery ‘bought as novelty’ from North Shore

NORTH VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) — The Canadian Armed Forces safely removed a piece of live artillery from a North Vancouver neighbourhood Wednesday evening. Roads have been reopened, and people evacuated from their homes have returned.

The North Vancouver RCMP was called to the area of Dollarton Highway and Roche Point Road around 1 p.m.

“An historical ordnance [believed inert] bought as a novelty may in fact be a hazard,” said a tweet from police, meaning someone who purchased a piece of historical weaponry didn’t know if it was real or fake.

Once Mounties determined it was a “military ordnance,” army personnel had to be called in to “assess and ensure the item is safe.”

Sgt. Peter DeVries told NEWS 1130 the artillery was not “inert” as they had initially thought.

“They examined the item, they deemed that it did appear to be a live ordinance, and they safely removed it. They have now cleared the scene so many thanks to them for their assistance and their expertise, and our thanks to the residents of North Vancouver for their patience,” he said.

“It did turn out that this was potentially a dangerous situation. So, it is a good thing that we exercised a great deal of caution.”

The person who purchased the item is not being investigated.

“This person had no ill intent. There was no criminality or nefarious motive behind how this happened. I think this person simply just got something that they didn’t quite bargain for.”

Around 7 p.m. police gave the all clear for people to return to the area near Cates Park.

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