THE Ministry of Defence has confirmed that a device found at a bungalow in Epping on Friday was part of a Second World War fire bomb.

Bomb disposal experts from The Royal Logistic Corps rushed to Theydon Place from their base in Colchester at about 5.15pm after the device was found and police evacuated the cul-de-sac for about an hour and a half while they investigated.

MoD spokesman Robert Mead said that the two-foot long Second World War incendiary bomb, which was designed to start a fire once dropped, had been discovered in the garden of one of the houses.

He added that the resident, who was an expert in wartime memorabilia, had taken the explosive device out of the bomb before leaving it in his garden and the person who found it, thought to be his son, did not know this and called the police.

“The captain unscrewed the device and saw there was nothing inside,” he added.

“Devices like this are usually destroyed, but this one was a particularly good example, so it will probably be kept in a collection at Colchester for reference.”