A Civil War artillery shell was found this Monday among the rubble of a building undergoing demolition on Tomàs Mieres street in Girona. The location of the device occurred during the final phase of the demolition work, when operators detected a suspicious object and alerted the Mossos d"Esquadra around 1730 hours.
Police intervention and action of the Tedax
Two patrols of the Mossos d"Esquadra immediately went to the property and confirmed that the object could be an explosive. Given the situation, the Tedax NRBQ team was activated, which identified the find as a 155-millimeter artillery shell, from the Civil War.
During the inspection, specialists confirmed that the projectile had no fuse, although it still contained a charge inside. The Tedax of Girona proceeded to remove the device with all safety measures and transferred it to a safe area for its destruction, following the established protocols. After the intervention, the technicians confirmed that there was no other device in the area.
Context of the building and background
The building where the discovery occurred had been evicted on October 6 of last year in a joint operation by the Municipal Police and the Mossos d"Esquadra. At that time, inside there were about twenty squatters. After the eviction, the accesses were boarded up and the property remained closed for security reasons.
The occupation of the block had generated repeated neighborhood complaints due to problems of insecurity, noise, and fights. The General Plan of Girona contemplated the demolition of the property to free up space next to the train tracks, following the line of actions carried out in 2016 with another nearby building.
Demolition and coordination with railway infrastructures
The final phase of the demolition on Tomàs Mieres street began on February 13 with heavy machinery, after several weeks of manual work started in mid-December. The building's proximity to the railway infrastructure forced the City Council to coordinate with ADIF, which caused delays in the process due to bureaucratic and permit issues.
The discovery of the projectile has not caused personal or material damage and the area has been secured after the intervention of specialized teams.