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Torpedoes were signaling devices to alert the train crew that a work crew was working on the track or that there was some danger ahead. They would be strapped to the rails about a quarter to a half mile ahead of the work crew. Image by Ralph Mayer. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.

Cause for alarm: Explosives found in railroad collection

Tom Hoepf
Tom Hoepf
Torpedoes were signaling devices to alert the train crew that a work crew was working on the track or that there was some danger ahead. They would be strapped to the rails about a quarter to a half mile ahead of the work crew. Image by Ralph Mayer. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.
Torpedoes were signaling devices to alert the train crew that a work crew was working on the track or that there was some danger ahead. They would be strapped to the rails about a quarter to a half mile ahead of the work crew. Image by Ralph Mayer. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.

EAU CLAIRE, Wis. (AP) – An Eau Claire man who bought a few Soo Line railroad antiques got more than he bargained for when he popped open a can in the collection: about 50 railroad torpedoes.

Pat Thoney quickly called police and evacuated his family from his property. The explosives, which contain nitroglycerine, were used in the days before two-way radios to warn train crews of dangers ahead on the tracks. But over time, they can become unstable.

Police and firefighters responded and called in the Marathon-Oneida Bomb Squad, which arrived at Thoney’s house Thursday night. A bomb squad member, in a protective suit, retrieved the torpedoes and took them to a shooting range west of the city where they were detonated.

“It’s kind of scary, but it’s kind of cool because it’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see this kind of stuff,” said Thoney’s 12-year-old son, Nick.

Thoney bought the collection—which also contained hundreds of harmless antiques such as lanterns, paperwork, rolltop desks, locks and keys—from the Chippewa Falls estate of Benny Bruhling, a longtime Soo Line employee. Bruhling’s daughter, Belinda Dressel is Thoney’s neighbor, the Eau Claire Leader-Telegram reported.

Thoney said he has had fun researching the history of his collection, which he called “a museum in itself.”

“It just shows you don’t know what’s in your neighbor’s garage,” he said with a chuckle.

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Information from: Leader-Telegram, http://www.leadertelegram.com/

Copyright 2012 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

AP-WF-09-27-13 2145GMT

ADDITIONAL IMAGE OF NOTE

Torpedoes were signaling devices to alert the train crew that a work crew was working on the track or that there was some danger ahead. They would be strapped to the rails about a quarter to a half mile ahead of the work crew. Image by Ralph Mayer. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.
Torpedoes were signaling devices to alert the train crew that a work crew was working on the track or that there was some danger ahead. They would be strapped to the rails about a quarter to a half mile ahead of the work crew. Image by Ralph Mayer. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.