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Posted: August 30, 2011

Fuquay-Varina woman finds dynamite in basement

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Fuquay-Varina, N.C. — A Fuquay-Varina woman made an explosive discovery in her basement Tuesday afternoon.

A maintenance man doing work at the woman's home on Ballard Road found a stick of dynamite and box of blasting caps in the basement. Harnett County authorities said the explosives had been there at least a decade.

The Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives was called in to dispose of it.

The homeowner, who is elderly, was taken out of the home until the scene has been cleared by authorities. No one else in the neighborhood was evacuated.

No other information was released and no charges were expected.

Web Editor: Bridget Whelan

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18 Comments

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Latest Comments

shadow, explosives are not something you can just go buy and store at your house. So, yes, this potentially could have been someone illegally in possession of explosives.

EverythingTicksMeOff
August 31, 2011 12:52 p.m.

[I was wondering about that stuff sweating, too--is it nitroglycerin that sweats out?]

Modern explosives are stable and don't sweat like the early stuff. I worked in mining and reopened a lot of old mines. Occasionaly we would find old crystalized sticks lying about. Tread lightly.

The Fox
August 31, 2011 12:37 p.m.

Who put the dynamite in the basement?

wildcat
August 31, 2011 11:00 a.m.

@udoowutchyalike, the gov’t saved this woman. They helped evacuate her safely, assessed and addressed the situation, removed the explosive material without any damage to her home or possessions and then notified the public to increase awareness.

And, if it could be proven that someone illegally obtained dynamite, wouldn’t you expect that person to at least be charged with something?

JustOneGodLessThanU
August 31, 2011 10:45 a.m.

ATF called in? To remove a stick of dynamite? Like Wayneboyd said this used to be an everyday tool, is this outlawed now or something? I don't understand.