Old, dead hand grenade found on Medford Street

Joseph Peterson was crouched over, clearing away rubble in the corner of a vacant apartment he was renovating. But something caught his eye — a ball shaped figure that looked straight out of Hollywood.

"It was a hand grenade and it looked like it should have been in a GI Joe cartoon or a Rambo movie," he said.

Peterson stayed calm.

"It didn’t really faze me. I just put it down and dialed 911. About twenty minutes later, I got nervous when I thought about the severity of the situation. But at the time I just reacted to some oddball thing at work, not that this happens everyday," he said.

Authorities told Peterson the grenade was dead and had long passed its prime.

"A state trooper told me it may have been a World War II era grenade," he said.

Calls to Somerville Police to find out further details went unreturned tonight.

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