Dirt from bomb site triggers new fears

Source: Rich McKay | Sentinel Staff Writer

Tons of dirt excavated at the old Army bombing range in southeast Orlando was used to build nearby roads and as fill for the Vista Lakes neighborhood, according to official records.

World War II-era bombs, bomb fragments and related contamination could be mixed in with the soil used to fill in swamps, make berms and level the ground for homes, a school and roads, records from the Army Corps of Engineers and county planning office show.

. . .

On Nov. 6, a 23-pound fragmentation bomb was found 2 feet under the dirt in the yard of a house under construction in the Warwick section of Vista Lakes.

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Starting Monday, the Army Corps plans to hunt for bombs on the grounds of Odyssey Middle School while the children are on Thanksgiving break. But it is unclear when the corps plans to expand its search into nearby neighborhoods.

After the discovery of the fragment bomb, corps officials promised they would look for bomb material in Warwick. But Amanda Ellison, a corps spokeswoman, said it is unclear whether the corps has the authority to investigate property that isn't specifically on a former military site. "We're checking into it," she said.

Read more: http://www.orlandosentinel.com/orl-bombs1707nov17,0,1322912.story

The Murphy Canyon Navy housing project is built on an old WWI & WWII artillery and boming range. Use to be in the 70s & 80s that Navy EOD would search the canyons and gullies for unexploded ordnance after every heavy rain storm. The residents were frequently warned by the Navy to keep their kids out of those areas because of the hazards there. The civilian housing developements next to Murphy Canyon were not searched by EOD. Nor do I think that the real estate agents mentioned the history of the area. At least once that I know of, in the civilian developments, some kids found an unexploded mortar shell and detonated it by accident in their garage. One kid lost both hand, the other lost at least one eye.