SITKA, ALASKA
That was the assessment by an explosives disposal team from Elmendorf Air Force Base in Anchorage, who flew to Sitka to take a look at the object. Sitka police Lieutenant Barry Allen says the fins visible on the object were braces that appeared to have once been welded to a deck.
The object was cut into pieces, and disposed of by the U.S. Coast Guard. Part of it remains buried under a large rock on the beach, which has been re-opened to the public.
“I’d hazard a guess to say that any commercial fisherman could have looked at it once it was uncovered and told us exactly what it was,” Allen said in an e-mail to KCAW.
The demolition team also detonated six cannonballs at the McGraw Gravel and Construction quarry. All six were detonated at once and it’s unknown whether any of them contained live explosives. Allen says it's not uncommon for people to turn in old cannonballs they've discovered around Sitka.
The team began its work around 10 a.m. and was finished by 1 p.m.
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