A routine family outing nearly turned tragic after an unexploded World War II mine was discovered on a beach in Burry Port, Carmarthenshire, several days after children had been seen playing on it.

Kelly Gravell and her two young children were enjoying a day by the sea when they encountered an object partially covered in seaweed. Believing it to be a harmless buoy, the children—six-year-old Erin and four-year-old Ellis—climbed onto it and played nearby, unaware of the danger it posed.

Photographs from the day later revealed the children standing on the object. Five days after the visit, local rangers identified it as a decades-old unexploded naval mine dating back more than 70 years.

Authorities immediately alerted a specialist bomb disposal unit, which carried out a controlled detonation to neutralize the device. The operation was conducted safely, and no injuries were reported. The beach was temporarily closed during the procedure as a precaution.

The children’s father, Gareth, later shared the discovery on social media, expressing shock that what appeared to be an ordinary object was, in fact, a wartime explosive. Kelly Gravell described the incident as deeply unsettling, acknowledging how close the family had come to serious harm.

Local officials apologized for the temporary disruption caused by the beach closure and emphasized that safety protocols were implemented swiftly once the threat was identified.

The incident highlights an ongoing but often overlooked risk: unexploded ordnance from past conflicts can still be found in public spaces, underscoring the importance of reporting unfamiliar or suspicious objects to authorities.