Atascosa County deputies safely detonate live Civil War shell

Atascosa County deputies safely detonated a live parrot round after identifying the device as a Civil War-era artillery shell. The find underscored a simple rule that can prevent injuries and evacuations: old military ordnance is not a collectible, a souvenir or a curiosity to handle.

A live Parrott round is a Civil War-era artillery shell, usually described as a 2.9-inch Parrott rifle shell with a wrought-iron sabot and first-pattern Parrott percussion fuse. The Atascosa County Sheriff's Office handled the response from Jourdanton, where county records list Sheriff Jake Guerra and place the office at 1108 Campbell Avenue.

The danger is not theoretical. In North Texas, a live artillery shell found in a backyard while a homeowner was doing yard work led police to evacuate nearby homes. In another Texas case, a homeowner bought what he thought was a cannonball for $3 before police and bomb-squad personnel determined it was a 160-year-old live explosive and detonated it.

Those incidents reflect how often unexploded Civil War-era ordnance still turns up in Texas and other states, sometimes in fields, backyards and inherited collections. Items that look corroded, rusted or harmless can still contain a live charge, and the age of the shell does not make it safe to move, strike or store in a garage or shed.

Public-safety guidance from the U.S. Army and other federal agencies is consistent: leave suspected unexploded ordnance alone and call 911 or local law enforcement. Bomb squads are trained to secure the area, clear bystanders and destroy the device in a controlled detonation when they determine it cannot be safely removed.

The Atascosa County case fit that pattern. What started as a historic shell became a live explosive response, and the deputies’ decision to detonate it instead of treating it as a relic kept the hazard from ending up in a home, a truck or a child’s hands.