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A beach walker threw a stone for his dog to fetch - only to discover that it was a live wartime GRENADE.

The man picked up the barnacle-encrusted "stone" for his pet to chase along the sands without realising it was deadly World War 2 explosive.

In an incredible stroke of luck, an off-duty military explosive expert also on the seafront at Dovercourt, near Harwich, Essex recognised the dog's new "toy" and immediately raised the alarm.

A 100-foot cordon was hastily put up by police around the grenade as a bomb disposal team rushed to the scene.

It is the fifth World War 2 hand grenade that has been washed up on the same beach over the last five weeks.

Yesterday, another similar grenade was discovered less than a quarter of a mile away.

Inspector Paul Butcher of Essex Police said: "Anyone who finds a grenade should on no account touch it but call the police immediately.

"We think the grenades may have been in a crate that ended up in the sea during World War Two and that it might now be breaking up or has been disturbed by dredging work in the area.

"The result is that these five devices have all been washed ashore on the same stretch of the bay so we are asking people to be vigilant if they go onto the beach and dial 999 if they find any of these devices.

"Some have been covered in barnacles but the one found on Saturday looked almost like new despite the fact it had been in the sea for many years."

All the grenades have been taken away by the Army's Explosive Ordnance team and destroyed in controlled explosions on the beach.