Bomb scare

[+Gill & Tony]

https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/apply-some-common-sense-geocache-clue-triggers-bomb-scare-in-nelson/

[+Goldenwattle]

Oops! 

[+MartyBartfast]

Would like to see pictures of the container!

[Keystone]

1 hour ago, MartyBartfast said:

Would like to see pictures of the container!

 

[+Bear and Ragged]

Quote

Geocaches are devices fitted with GPS, hidden in containers, the coordinates of which can be found online and the challenge is to find them.

 

Some brilliant research there!

[+MNTA]

Looks like a potential bomb to me. 

[+cerberus1]

We've said since we started that "pipe" caches look like bombs.  There's numerous examples of this container type being an issue.

We saw plastics mostly, and most weren't waterproof like in plumbing with actual seals, so we saw pipe threads having issues with capillary action (water traveling up the thread and into the "container"). I have a box of Cherne test plugs if they'd be people friendly...

I'd bet the landowner wouldn't have approved of that container if permission was even asked for.  

Seems folks here got the message, not seeing one in years (unless they're in low D/T hides). 

Thanks Gill & Tony for bringing this up.  

[+Michaelcycle]

The frequency of these kind of reports seems to have decreased in recent years. I assume that is due to the relatively recent cache hiding guideline that states "When you submit a cache page for review, add a Reviewer Note. Describe your geocache location, container, and how it is hidden."

The cache in question is only a couple years old but I see that the CO replaced it earlier this year. Based on at least one prior finder's comment after the event I don't think that was the original container type.

I don't know about New Zealand but pipe/end cap bombs are common in the USA. ATF data from 2019 indicate more than 50 actual explosions or discovery of unexploded devices of this type. They are top of mind for all law enforcement that respond to these events.

[+hzoi]

Once again, metal pipes do not make for good geocaches, because they make for good bombs.

 

Additional bonus reason besides that, is that they leak. Yes, pipes that are tightened down properly do not leak, but ones that can be undone by hand will likely leak. Just look at the photo Keystone posted above - it apparently needed a bison tube to keep the log dry, 

[+L0ne.R]

It would help if geocachers report caches that look like pipe bombs. Were there any NMs or NAs on the cache? Any photos of the cache? Anyone express concerns in their log?

[Keystone]

52 minutes ago, L0ne.R said:

Were there any NMs or NAs on the cache? Any photos of the cache? Anyone express concerns in their log?

 

No, there were no concerns expressed in the cache logs prior to the incident.  The photo I posted earlier in the thread is an image of the cache that we're discussing, taken in July 2022.  From the logs, the cache container was replaced at least once and probably twice - most recently in June 2022.  I cannot tell whether the container design changed from the original container at the time of publication.