Police were told it was a 'training exercise' ... so why were two shells demolished by Defence?

However, three days later Defence issued a statement to the contrary, saying that two three-inch shells were discovered in Mount Ainslie Nature Reserve on Friday, close to a Defence Department office complex in Campbell, on Northcott Drive.

Defence "attended the scene and assessed the unexploded ordnance as unsafe to be transported".

"The unexploded ordnance was destroyed by demolition in the location it was discovered on Friday 10 February 2023," their statement said.

The emergency began when an alert was issued on Friday afternoon, February 10, to Defence staff working at Campbell Park to restrict their movements.

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Two ACT Rural Fire Service units attended the location and police rushed to seal off the Northcott Drive entrance to the Campbell Park offices.

Neither attending police nor the ESA were able to offer any clarity at the time as to the nature of the incident but advised The Canberra Times they had been told it was "training exercise" and that Defence was the lead agency and was therefore best placed to comment.

Defence media has been asked for further comment.