An unexploded WW2 bomb was found by a man looking looking for his sunglasses that he dropped in a lake while fishing.
Police cordoned off the park in Liverpool and members of the army were seen carrying sandbags to where the bomb was lying.
One person told the Liverpool Echo : "I was walking the dog in Greenbank Park when I saw two lads in the lake. One had lost his glasses so he was looking for them, and that’s when he found the bomb.
"The next minute the police arrived and the park was shut off, with police telling people to stay away. Bomb disposal officers could also be seen shovelling near the lake near to where the item was found."
Later police confirmed that what was believed to be an "unexploded ordnance device" was found in the Liverpool park.
There was plenty of discussion on social media over the unexploded bomb and one person tweeted a video of what appeared to be the controlled explosion by the army's bomb squad.
A cloud of smoke could be seen rising with the sandbags around the bomb.
The Twitter user wrote: " Some lads fished out a WW2 bomb out of Greenbank Park Lake and the park was closed off and it was detonated."
Another person tweeted: " My brother was fishing and his sunglasses fell in the lake.
"They fished them out amongst a few bottles and a bomb! The army have just detonated it, if you heard a bang?”
Plenty of others also reported having heard that there was a bomb in the city centre park.
“Greenbank Park in Liverpool closed to public and cordoned off. Police and (I think) bomb disposal teams on-site dealing with some kind of UXO by the benches… crowd of spectators gathering, some with beers,” wrote another.
It sparked considerable surprise for those who regularly pass by the park.
"Mad to think of all the times I've walked around the lake in Greenbank park and there's been a bomb in the lake the whole time," said one person.
Another said: "Greenbank Park’s closed and the army are here because they’ve found a bomb apparently."
A spokesperson for Merseyside police told the Liverpool Echo: "We can confirm that an item reported to what is believed to be an unexploded ordnance device was found in Greenbank Park yesterday, Tuesday 7 June. Officers were called to the scene at around 5.20pm after a member of the public reported finding the device in the park’s lake.
"The area was cordoned off while the Army's EOD made a controlled explosion of the item. We thank members of the public for their patience while the incident was dealt with."
Liverpool due to its industry was heavily bombed during the early years of WW2.
The Imperial War Museums website stated : "Liverpool experienced its first air raid in August 1940 and was targeted regularly through the autumn of 1940 with 15 raids in September and nine in October.
"However, the first major raid came on 28-29 November when it was hit by 350 tons of high explosive bombs, 30 land mines and 3,000 incendiaries. Nearly 300 people were killed."
The Mirror has approached Merseyside Police for comment.
