In trouble for picking up 'gems'

The woman picked up the amber-like stone and put it in her bag, not knowing it was white phosphorus left over from World War II.

A German woman suffered a rare fire accident after picking up an "amber stone" on the riverbank and putting it in her pocket, the Telegraph reported on August 6.

A German woman got into trouble for picking up stones on the riverbank. Illustration photo: Telegraph

The 41-year-old woman picked up the stone while walking along the banks of the Elbe River in Wedel, near Hamburg. After a while, the stone began to dry out and burst into flames. Passersby had to help and call the fire brigade to put out the fire, but the victim was fortunately unharmed.

Through investigation, police said that this "amber" was actually white phosphorus in a warhead left over from World War II, preserved intact when soaked in water but could react with oxygen in the air when dry and catch fire.

White phosphorus is considered a chemical weapon because it burns violently in air and causes severe burns that cause necrosis of the victim's flesh. White phosphorus fires are very difficult to extinguish.

The Germans regularly found unexploded ordnance on construction sites, in gardens and in rivers. The Allies dropped a large number of bombs on strategic and industrial areas of Germany, of which about 25% did not explode.

According to Khoahoc.tv