A family dog in the border province of Si Sa Ket retrieved a rusty object from a paddy field and brought it home on July 11. It turned out to be a live hand grenade.
It was fortunate that the homeowner became suspicious and alerted the authorities, preventing what could have been a deadly accident.
Homeowner Rungnapa Duangta said he had just returned home from hospital and was resting in the front yard when he noticed the round, rusty object. He picked it up for a closer look and was alarmed to find it still had its safety pin in place, indicating it was a live grenade.
He immediately placed it outside the house and notified village officials.
His family members told him that the dog had found the object earlier that morning and had been chewing on it. They had assumed that the dog was playing with a bone or a piece of plastic, as it often did, and paid little attention.
Photo: Si Sa Ket Public Relations Office
Police and explosive ordnance disposal officers later identified the device as a Chinese-made Type 82-2 fragmentation hand grenade.
Despite its age and rusted appearance, authorities said the grenade remained fully functional and posed a serious danger. Explosives experts safely detonated the grenade in a remote rice field.
The controlled explosion left a crater about 30 centimetres deep and 60 centimetres wide.
Photo: Si Sa Ket Public Relations Office
Following the incident, district authorities urged the public not to touch or move suspicious objects and to notify local officials or police immediately, so trained personnel could handle them safely.
