QUINCY - A marker bomb, used for practice in years past in the Columbia Basin was discovered and destroyed on July 18, the Quincy Police Department has reported.

The QPD responded to a call to the 1000 block of B ST SW, ConAgra Foods, for a suspicious device in a potato storage building. The building was evacuated for precaution, and the Richland PD bomb squad responded.

It was determined to be what is referred to as a marker bomb. It was removed from the building and denoted in an open area next to the facility. No one was injured.

In the past, the Basin was used by the military as training grounds. Over the years, several similar devices have been found in the fields. The marker bomb is a small device that would leave a white target on the ground for the trailing planes to place their bombs.

The next day after the detonation, a citizen of Quincy contacted the QPD. The citizen reported he located a similar ordinance four years while plowing one of his fields.

The man returned, put it in his garage and forgot about it. After reading about the ConAgra bomb he remembered it and no longer wanted it in his possession.

U.S. Air Force EOD, located at Fairchild AFB in Spokane, destroyed it.

- Staff report