Employees at a Maine Goodwill store discovered hand grenades hidden in a donation box — forcing the shop to evacuate, according to authorities.
The box, which was left outside the Goodwill in Augusta, contained what appeared to be military-grade grenades and mortars, Morgan Sewall, a spokesperson for Goodwill Northern New England, said in a statement.
As soon as the explosives were located by employees Tuesday morning, the store was evacuated for the Maine State Police Bomb Squad to assess the situation, Sewall said.
Shortly after 1:10 pm, the store reopened after authorities gave the location the clear — reassuring patrons the hand grenade was not active, Goodwill Northern New England announced in a Facebook post.
“Unfortunately this is oddly common,” Sewall said in the statement.
“Many New Englanders collect antique weapons in their homes. We ask that people do not donate weaponry. Even if they know it is antique and safe, our store employees do not, and we need to take the precautions we have today,” Sewall said.
Police do not believe there was any ill intent from the person who dropped off the antique explosive, WMTW reported.
In October 2023, a donation of a live “cluster bomblet” at a Wisconsin Goodwill prompted the evacuation of an entire city block and an investigation into the mystery donor.
