An old explosive device found by a resident while cleaning out his garage was taken to a safe place and detonated Thursday, Feb. 3, police said.

First reported by YourArlington partner Patch, which said the items were blown up at Mt. Pleasant Cemetery.

An Arlington police report says that about 11:50 a.m. Thursday, police spoke with a resident, who said he was cleaning out his garage and found "very old explosive bolts." Patch reported that the old explosives "were used for building teardowns. The police report does not describe them further.

The explosives might be pyrotechnic fasteners, which are described here >> The resident told police he wanted to turn them in for destruction.

An officer said he looked at the devices and they appeared to him that they were "starting to break down."

Police reached out to Arlington Fire and the State Police Bomb Unit. After evaluation, the items were deemed unsafe, brought to a safe area and detonated.

Capt. Richard Flynn told YourArlington on Friday, Feb. 4: " Yes, the APD assisted a resident yesterday in the disposal of an out of date construction explosive that was found at his home. This was not a bomb. We are thankful for the assistance provided by our partners at the AFD and Massachusetts State Police."

Patch reported that the State Police Bomb Unit detonated them at the cemetery.

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This news announcement was published Friday, Feb. 4, 2022.