Teen badly injured as old munition explodes
Artillery shell blows up when youth tries to saw it open
Aaron Kalman is a former writer and breaking news editor for the Times of Israel
A Safed teenager was critically wounded Thursday morning when an old artillery shell exploded as he tried to saw it open on his apartment balcony .
Police said an initial investigation indicated the 15-year-old found two pieces of unexploded ordnance and took them home, where he attempted to open one of them with an electric saw.
“We’re trying to understand the circumstances of the event. It’s unclear to us where he found these items and how things played out leading up to the tragedy,” Maj.-Gen. Ofer Kantovich told Maariv’s news site.
The Ziv Hospital said the teen was being treated in the intensive care unit. He suffered from multiple injuries to his internal organs and shrapnel all over his body, it said in a statement.