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15th December 2023
09:10am GMT
There was a bomb scare at a hospital in France when an 88-year-old Frenchman arrived with an eight-inch World War One artillery shell stuck in his rectum.
The unnamed senior citizen arrived at the Hospital Sainte Musse in Toulon, southern France, one Saturday evening in the hope of having the bomb removed from his anus.
His arrival sparked a bomb scare as hospital officials feared the antique explosive would detonate, French news organisation Var-Matin reported.
But bomb disposal experts determined that there was little risk of the shell exploding inside the man.
It is understood that the man had inserted it in his bottom for sexual pleasure.
A spokesperson for Hospital Sainte Musse said: "An emergency occurred from 9pm to 11.30pm on Saturday that required the intervention of bomb disposal personnel, the evacuation of adult and pediatric emergencies as well as the diversion of incoming emergencies."
The spokesperson added: "We had to manage the risk in a reactive framework. When in doubt, we took all the precautions."
The bomb was in fact a collector's item from the First World War, and was commonly used by the French military in the early 20th century.
Doctors made an incision into the pensioner's rectum, and were able to dislodge the artillery shell.
Once removed, they measured it at 8in long (20cm) and more than 2in wide (5cm).
Believe it or not, this is not the first time something like this has happened.
In December 2021, a bomb squad was called to a hospital in Gloucester after a patient arrived with an artillery shell wedged up his southern pole.
Medics feared that the anti-tank shell would explode and so were forced to call army explosives experts.
The unnamed patient told the hospital that he “slipped and fell” on the 17x6cm projectile that was part of his own military collector’s items.
The armour piercing round was later identified as a World War Two 57mm shell that was usually fired from anti-tank guns.
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