Transportation Security Administration officers at an Alabama airport discovered five Civil War-era cannonballs inside a passenger’s checked luggage, prompting a bomb scare and a police investigation.
The highly unusual find was made on July 18 at Gulf Shores International Airport when Lead TSA Officer Justin Dupree spotted the projectiles during an X-ray screening of checked bags. The largest was roughly the size of a grapefruit and the smallest about an inch wide. They were wrapped in paper towels.
Unsure whether the items were live explosives, Dupree immediately alerted a supervisor and TSA bomb specialists. Local law enforcement from the Baldwin County Sheriff’s Office also responded.
Authorities later confirmed the cannonballs were inert and posed no explosive threat. However, they still could not travel because they are classified as artillery munitions until their status is verified.
A police investigation determined the cannonballs had been stolen from nearby Fort Morgan, a historic site that has guarded Mobile Bay since 1834 and played a significant role in the Civil War. The fort is now operated as a museum by the Alabama Historical Commission.
Officials said a juvenile took the artifacts from a storage area at the fort. They ended up in the checked bag of a relative who, according to investigators, was unaware of how the items were obtained. The cannonballs have since been returned to Fort Morgan.
“I had never seen anything quite this unique,” Dupree said in a TSA statement. “I’ve seen inert grenades and training munitions but never an Indiana Jones-esque stolen artifact-type situation.”
TSA Alabama Federal Security Director Tara Corse praised the officers and the coordination with local agencies.
No injuries were reported, and airport operations were not significantly disrupted.
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