By James S. Tyree
Staff Writer
NORMAN — Norman police called on the U.S. Army on Tuesday to help identify and dispose of a suspected explosive device — for the second time this week.
The latest device was found in a tree about 1 p.m. Tuesday on Pickard Avenue, just south of Boyd Street, in a residential neighborhood near the University of Oklahoma.
Norman police Lt. David Teuscher said employees of a tree removal company found what is believed to be a World War I-era simulator device lodged high in a tree. A tree company employee described the object as looking like a small bomb with a serial number on it.
"It was probably put in the v or y of a small tree many, many years ago that just grew,” he said. "The person probably forgot about it being there.”
A tree removal worker put it in a pickup and flagged down a police officer in the area.
The officer contacted the department's Hazardous Devices Unit, which notified an explosive disposal team at Fort Sill.
On Monday, the Fort Sill team helped detonate three grenades, including two that were found Sunday in a Norman garage.
"This one was longer than a grenade, maybe about 10 inches long,” Teuscher said. "It's in a secure place now.”
The device was being retained for further examination by the Fort Sill team, he said.
