Two unexploded mortars were found in the Sartfell area of the island yesterday (Monday) by a dog walker. Police believe recent heavy rain had washed away top soil exposing part of the explosives which had lain buried for some time. An army bomb disposal team is currently heading to the island and the site is being kept secure from the public with the help of volunteers from the island’s Civil Defence team.

A police spokesman said: ’We don’t really know if they are dangerous or not so we have to follow procedure and assume they are, but they are far enough away from the public not to cause a problem.’

Ian Young, of Civil Defence, confirmed they had been guarding an unexploded bomb for the past 24 hours.