A controlled explosion is a method for detonating or disabling a suspected explosive device.
Methods which are used to set off a controlled explosion include emptying out the area and moving the package (with the aid of robots) into a confined space such as a telephone booth.
Another classic method of controlled explosion is to place the bomb in a skip and fill it with sand before detonating it with a self-incendiary device or a fuse.
Controlled explosions are becoming quite common in the UK, especially in the South East where, because there is a lot of development, unexploded World War II bombs are often found by construction diggers.
Famous quotes containing the words controlled and/or explosion:
“Our eldest boy, Bob, has been away from us nearly a year at school, and will enter Harvard University this month. He promises very well, considering we never controlled him much.”
—Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865)
“Frau Stöhr ... began to talk about how fascinating it was to cough.... Sneezing was much the same thing. You kept on wanting to sneeze until you simply couldn’t stand it any longer; you looked as if you were tipsy; you drew a couple of breaths, then out it came, and you forgot everything else in the bliss of the sensation. Sometimes the explosion repeated itself two or three times. That was the sort of pleasure life gave you free of charge.”
—Thomas Mann (1875–1955)