Columbus: In a peculiar turn of events, a military museum in Ohio alerted police in Bellevue, Washington, about a rather unique donation offer – an old, rusted rocket discovered in a local man’s garage. The subsequent investigation by a bomb squad unveiled that the rocket was, in fact, an inert nuclear missile.
The police received the unusual call from the National Museum of the US Air Force near Dayton, Ohio, prompting them to dispatch a bomb squad to the potential donor’s residence. Contrary to expectations, the device turned out to be a Douglas AIR-2 Genie, an unguided air-to-air rocket designed to carry a 1.5 kt W25 nuclear warhead. Fortunately, no warhead was attached, ensuring that there was never any danger to the community.
Bellevue Police Department spokesman Seth Tyler, downplayed the incident, describing the rocket as “just basically a gas tank for rocket fuel.” He expressed amusement at the situation, stating that a bomb squad member questioned why they were issuing a news release on a rusted piece of metal.
The man offering the donation, who wishes to remain anonymous and is reportedly “extremely irritated” by the media coverage, claimed the rocket belonged to a deceased neighbor and was purchased from an estate sale.
Surprisingly, the military museum did not forewarn the man about reporting his donation offer to the police. Despite the unexpected discovery, officials never suspected the presence of a nuclear warhead, eliminating the need for mass evacuations in the city of Bellevue, home to 150,000 people located 10 miles (16 km) east of Seattle.
Given that the rocket was determined to be an “artefact with no explosive hazard” and the military did not request its return, the police left the item with the neighbor. The man intends to restore it for display in a museum.
According to historical records, the Genie rocket was utilized by the US and Canada during the Cold War, with its sole live firing occurring in 1957. Production of the rocket ceased in 1962.
