Doddiscombesleigh: Residents of five properties had to be evacuated after two young girls discovered what appeared to be an exploded mortar shell in a garden on Thursday last week.

Beth Cupper, 10, and Alice Middleton, 11, found the bomb when they were playing in Beth's garden. 'They brought it into the house and said look at this,' said Nick Cupper, Beth's father.

'We told them it was a bomb and to put it down somewhere soft. They put it on the sofa gently and backed away. We then rang the police who told us to evacuate the house and turn off all mobile phones as they can affect it.

'Our house and others in the courtyard were all taped off, as was the road so no one could drive through the village.'

A Royal Navy Bomb disposal team from Plymouth attended at 7.45pm, two hours after the shell was discovered. Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) declared the shell to be genuine.

It had been deactivated some time previously and then restored with paint to its former condition, giving the appearance of a viable item.

Mr Cupper said: 'They confirmed it was a bomb but said it was too dark to do a controlled experiment. By this point tests were done on it and it was found out that it had been neutralised.'

Mr Cupper asked if the children could keep the shell as they are currently studying war history at school, but were told it had to be taken away. 'We were told we weren't allowed to keep it as it could mean there could be more false alarms with the shell in the future,' said Mr Cupper.

'It may have taught the children a lesson not to pick up things that they are not sure about, but it is also good that they are inquisitive.

'Everybody has been talking about it, but I think the children are a little fed up with it all now.'