New York - Military munitions believed to be sitting on the bottom of a bay off New York Harbor since the Korean War era could endanger the construction of a planned trash shipping facility.

State Assemblyman Bill Colton says that dredging for the new facility on Gravesend Bay could detonate the shells. The area already has a large fuel oil depot.

Hundreds of tons of ammunition were being unloaded from the aircraft carrier USS Bennington on March 6, 1954, when a sudden storm caused a barge to capsize and break loose. By the time the barge was found upside down six miles away, it was empty.

400 anti-aircraft shells were recovered by divers, but as many as 14,000 were never found.

“It’s possible that 219 tons of anti-aircraft shells are still out there on the bottom, and we must make sure we’re not digging and dredging in a place where they go ka-poof,” Colton said.
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read about this in today's paper.You often read about how in Europe they find old bombs and things from World War 2.I guess they will have to put their idea on hold untill they can go and
salvage the things,if they even try to.

Well, there's a shipload of ammo (about 1,500 ton's worth) that's been sitting in the Thames estuary since the war ... SS Richard Montgomery And also

I'll bet most of that ammunition has gone bad with seawater contamination.

After so many years in saltwater, that ammo is almost certainly ineffectual.
Water pressure alone will force water into the case, where the projectile is seated into the case.
Most small-arms ammunition cannot withstand going down 20 feet in freshwater for a few minutes --- let alone decades in saltwater. This is why special forces place their loaded magazines in waterproof plastic bags if they have to swim or scuba a long distance. Even with sealant around the projectile and primer, water is eventually forced in if the water pressure is high enough, or exposure is long-term.
An exception might be what's in the anti-aircraft projectile: if loaded with plastic explosive, it could be a problem. Composition 4 (C-4) is very stable and water resistant. But I doubt that the projectiles were loaded with C-4. Rather, they were probably loaded with an explosive designed for exploding projectiles (for use against aircraft) such as PETN.
Still, when it comes to old munitions, you cannot speak in absolutes. Just when you think something can't possibly happen, it can --- and often with disastrous results.
What a mess!
It's sad too, because so many people in that area will blame the military when, the truth is, the folks who made the decision to dump that ammo, and those who dumped it, are either long retired or dead. Most of those who will get the blame were not even born when these rounds were dumped.

Well, some creator God in His farseeing wisdom said, 'Hmmmm, let us see, since we created man in our image, after our likeness, 'ZZZZZzzzz.' Let us cause this! And We'll see how he fits that in his overburdened schedule, Ha, Ha, Ha, Haaaa.