Space Force airmen respond to suspected explosive found near Cocoa Beach school

BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. - A suspected explosive was located near a Brevard County school – prompting a military response to remove the device. 

What we know:

Airmen part of an Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) team responded to an area near Freedom 7 Elementary school in Cocoa Beach after a suspected unexploded device was found when construction crews broke ground near the school, Space Launch Delta 45  – a U.S. Space Force unit – from Patrick Space Force Base reported on Feb. 25. 

The ordnance was found on Tuesday afternoon, Feb. 24. 

The Brevard County Sheriff's office had previously responded to the scene and identified the device as military ordnance – which consists of military weapons, including ammunition, explosives or hazardous materials. Ordnance specialists conduct the disposal of hazardous unexploded conventional, chemical, and biological ordnance, as well as improvised explosives.

The found ordnance was identified by EOD technicians as a World War II-era, American-made practice bomb, a press release said. The ordnance did not contain high explosives, but is equipped with a smoke charge to mark the location of impact during air training exercises, officials said. 

The team transported the material to Cape Canaveral Space Force Station for disposal.