AN unexploded wartime bomb was found on Saltburn beach on Monday.

It was the third time in as many weeks that police have been called to the beach by members of the public after a weapon has been discovered.

The three inch trench mortar bomb was found near The Ship Inn. The Royal Army Logistical Corps, part of the bomb disposal unit, was called out from Catterick Garrison to dispose of it.

But after x-raying the weapon, the team decided there was a slim chance it could have been a high explosive chemical mortar bomb from World War One and sent it off for further tests.

PC Bill Heenan, from Saltburn Police, said they usually got one call out a year to a report of a bomb on the beach.

It is a mystery why there suddenly seems to be a rush of weapons washing up on the shore, he said, but it could be due to sunken ships off the coast breaking up or the current tidal pattern.

"We want to make the public aware that they shouldn't pick these things up if they find them on the beach but call the police immediately," PC Heenan said.