The Ashland County Sheriff's Department bomb squad responded to Purdy Construction, 200 E. Longview Ave., late Thursday afternoon for what turned out to to be old construction explosives.
The material was found inside Purdy Construction on Thursday afternoon while employees were cleaning out a storage locker. (Ashland County Sheriff's Dept. bomb squad photo)
The Ashland County Sheriff's Department bomb squad responded to Purdy Construction, 200 E. Longview Ave., late Thursday afternoon for what turned out to to be old construction explosives.
MANSFIELD -- The Ashland County Sheriff's Department bomb squad was called to a Mansfield company late Thursday afternoon after employees found what turned out to be old road construction explosives.
An employee at Purdy Construction, 200 E. Longview Ave., said he found the stick-like explosives while cleaning out lockers inside the facility, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2023.
He contacted the Mansfield Fire Department, which responded to the scene, and also summoned the bomb squad from Ashland.
The material was found inside Purdy Construction on Thursday afternoon while employees were cleaning out a storage locker. (Ashland County Sheriff's Dept. bomb squad photo)
The material, found inside a steel box, was marked as Trenchrite and was labeled as "high explosives" and "dangerous."
It labeled the material as "cartridged water gel explosives," which are said to have advantages over traditional dynamite, including lower toxicity and safer to manufacture, transport and store.
"It's nothing too exciting, but we're going to go burn it," said Deputy Joe Titus, a bomb squad technician. "It's old road construction explosives used to blow embankments and whatnot."
Titus said the explosives were not dynamite and were stable.
Above are old road construction explosives found at Purdy Construction on Thursday afternoon. (Ashland County Sheriff's Dept. bomb squad photo)
"(An employee) said it's likely 20 years old and they just forgot they had it," Titus said. "It's in stick form. They look like sausage lengths."
Titus said it would require some sort of fusing system, like blasting caps, to ignite the explosives..
He said the bomb squad removed about 10 sticks, or perhaps five pounds of material. Titus said the explosives didn't pose a significant threat, even if they blew up.
"It wouldn't be that bad at all," said Titus, who has completed the FBI’s hazardous device school.
"They're not super heavy. We're going to stop at the Ashland Fire Department and have those guys come out with us when we burn it.
"At this point, it shouldn't explode. It's so old and degraded and it has different properties than dynamite. Even dynamite, you can burn. But with dynamite, when it gets older, it crystallizes. And it's the crystals that are volatile. This doesn't, it's not crystallized," Titus said.
The Ashland County Sheriff's Dept. bomb squad is on call 24/7, according to the department website. It serves Ashland, Knox and Richland counties and has also been called to assist Crawford and Marion counties.Â
The Purdy employee said the discovery resulted in a good training opportunity for workers who found the material.
Mansfield Fire Dept. Lt. Matt Shafley said Engine 6 was summoned to the scene to stand by while the bomb squad handled the explosives.
Purdy Construction has been in business in Mansfield since 1923. It was founded by Wes Purdy, who picked up a plot at an old railroad service building on East Longview Avenue, according to the company website.
The company's first project was the viaduct at U.S. 42 and Ohio 430, which still stands today.
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