IED Found at Alabama Reservoir Dam Base, Safely Detonated

Divers conducting routine maintenance at the Converse Reservoir dam in Mobile County, Alabama, discovered a grenade-type improvised explosive device underwater at the structure's base on Wednesday, triggering a swift multi-agency operation to retrieve and detonate the device safely away from the site.

The Mobile Area Water and Sewer System, which manages the dam and the 3,600-acre Big Creek Lake reservoir it holds back, contracted the divers for inspections and repairs. The reservoir contains 17 billion gallons of water and provides the primary drinking water source for Mobile and surrounding communities, serving about 350,000 residents with roughly 60 million gallons daily. Built in 1952, the facility is federally designated as critical infrastructure.

Upon discovery, the divers alerted the Mobile Area Water and Sewer System, which notified the Mobile County Sheriff's Office. That agency coordinated a response involving the FBI Bomb Squad, Mobile Police Department Explosive Ordnance Detail, Alabama Law Enforcement Agency Bomb Squad, Daphne Search and Rescue Team, and the Gulf Coast Regional Maritime Response and Render Safe Team. The latter group retrieved the device and...