With its promenade, Sheerness has much in common with other seaside resorts dotted around the UK coast – and one thing that makes it very unique.
The Kent town of around 13,000 people sits on the Isle of Sheppey, with the Port of Sheerness being a major point for imports of cars into the UK.
However, sitting around a mile and a half from the shore sit 1,400 tonnes of explosives, which – should they ever go off – would cause a massive explosion, EssexLive reports.
The explosives lie in the shipwreck of the SS Richard Montgomery, a US ship that sank during the Second World War.
The vessel arrived in the Thames Estuary in August 1944 and was waiting to join a convoy to France when the ship dragged its anchor on a sandbank.
The ship broke its back and now lies 49 feet below the surface, with its rotting masts still visible above the seabed to this day.
Work to remove the masts has been repeatedly delayed, and surveys continue to monitor the explosives, which have never been recovered due to the danger posed by the cargo.
An exclusion zone is in place around the vessel and it is marked on charts to avoid potential collisions.
Reports vary as to what would happen should the explosives ever detonate.
A BBC report from 1970 suggested it would throw a column of water and debris thousands of feet into the air and cause waves of up to 16 feet in height, while shattering every window in Sheerness – although a report in 2012 states the wave would be only about 3.3 feet high.
The Government’s Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) states: “While the risk of a major explosion is believed to be remote, it is considered prudent to monitor the condition of the wreck.
“Surveys are carried out by the MCA on a regular basis to ensure that any changes to the wreck, or its immediate environment, are discovered quickly.
“It is clear from the results of these surveys that the hull is subject to the prevailing environmental conditions and is showing evidence of gradual deterioration, however, the wreck is considered to be in a stable condition.”
