City bomb team are praised

A squad from Southern Diving Unit 2 (SDU2) based on Horsea Island, were scrambled to deal with the deadly device unearthed near Bognor Regis.

The air-dropped Nazi sea mine was discovered by a shocked walker who at first thought it was an old oil drum.

Eventually, a team from Portsmouth was called out to deal with the 6ft-long, rusting munition.

Imposing a one-mile maritime and air exclusion zone, the Royal Navy team soon got to work, first stabilising the bomb before floating it away from the beach.

It was detonated on Saturday afternoon, creating a huge plume of water more than 100ft high.

Following the successful detonation, Captain Roger Readwin, captain of mine warfare and patrol vessels, diving and fishery protection, praised his team’s work.

Taking to Twitter, the naval officer said: ‘Incredibly proud of the good work delivered by the Royal Navy’s Southern Diving Unit 2 over the last 24 hours, dealing with a Second World War German mine found near Bognor Regis. Throughout they ensured the British public were safe.’