Old Military Explosive Found At ConAgra Foods In Quincy 'Not Intended To Harm'

UPDATE: Police say an explosive found in a potato bin at a processing plant in Quincy Wednesday morning was an old military device that was apparently left over from practice bombing runs years ago in Eastern Washington.

Sgt. Paul Snyder told The Wenatchee World (http://is.gd/kofPwX) an employee found the foot-long device at ConAgra Foods.    He says it was a marker bomb, used to mark the location where larger bombs would be dropped. It carried a charge and could have caused serious injury if it had gone off in someone's hand.    It was picked up by a harvesting machine and transferred by truck to the bin in Quincy.    A bomb squad from the Richland Police Department detonated the device nearby. No one was injured.    

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QUINCY, Wash. - A suspicious device forced the evacuation of the ConAgra Foods plant in Quincy on Wednesday morning, but it was later determined the device was not intended to harm anyone.

According to plant officials, an investigation revealed the device was an old military explosive that had been buried in a potato field, was dug up by potato harvesting equipment and ended up in a harvest bin with other potatoes at the plant.   

The device was removed and employees were allowed to return to work.

Earlier, the wife of a ConAgra employee told KHQ-TV that a female janitor found the device and notified security who called police.