A 24-year-old man’s late-night trip to the emergency room triggered a brief evacuation at Rangueil Hospital after surgeons discovered a World War I–era artillery shell lodged in his rectum, authorities and local reports said Monday.
The unusual find set off a standard explosives protocol in one of southern France’s largest medical centers at the start of a busy winter weekend. Police, firefighters and a bomb disposal unit were called to the hospital while an operating room was secured and adjacent areas were cleared. Officials said the device, roughly eight inches long and several centimeters in diameter, dated from 1918 and was ultimately determined to be non-explosive. The patient remained hospitalized for observation after surgery. Investigators opened an inquiry into how the munition was obtained and whether weapons laws were violated.
Hospital staff said the man arrived around midnight between Saturday and Sunday, Jan. 31–Feb. 1, complaining of severe rectal pain. During an operation near 2 a.m., clinicians realized the object was a small, pointed artillery round from the First World War. The team paused, secured the suite and alerted authorities. Hallways near the operating block were cleared as firefighters set a perimeter and police routed foot traffic away from the wing. “They discovered it and called bomb disposal,” a hospital worker said, describing a calm, step-by-step response as specialists arrived to assess the risk.
The shell measured about 20 centimeters in length and around four centimeters across, according to descriptions provided to local media. Bomb technicians inspected the casing and reported it had been demilitarized, meaning there was no explosive filler. Because the device was found inside a patient, responders kept a wider safety margin than usual while confirming the status and arranging secure transfer for disposal. No injuries were reported among hospital staff or patients, and routine care resumed in nearby areas after the sweep. The man, whose name was not released, is expected to be interviewed by police once medically cleared. Why he had the object remains unclear.
France regularly contends with battlefield relics more than a century after World War I and World War II. Farmers and construction crews still turn up shells and grenades in what authorities call the “Iron Harvest,” and bomb squads neutralize thousands of items each year. In December 2022, a hospital in Toulon partially evacuated when an 88-year-old man arrived with a similar WWI shell in his rectum, an incident that drew international headlines and prompted reminders about safe handling of historical munitions. Toulouse sits far from the Western Front’s heaviest fighting, but collectors and families sometimes keep souvenirs that resurface in unexpected ways.
Police opened a routine investigation into possible possession of prohibited “category A” munitions under French law. Prosecutors will review whether the shell’s demilitarized status affects any potential offense. Officials said the hospital followed standard emergency procedures for suspicious ordnance: isolate, evacuate, and hand off to bomb specialists for assessment. Any disciplinary or administrative reviews, if pursued, would be handled internally by the regional hospital trust. Authorities did not announce arrests or charges as of Monday, and no court hearing dates were posted.
Outside the hospital complex on the Garonne’s left bank, blue lights flickered as firefighters and police formed a cordon. A handful of patients waited on benches or in ambulances during the sweep, staff said, while others were redirected through alternate entrances. “It was quick and controlled,” said a paramedic who described crews keeping distance until technicians confirmed the shell posed no immediate threat. Inside, surgeons completed the extraction, and the ordnance team secured the item in a protective container for transfer.
As of Monday evening in Toulouse, the patient remained under medical care and was stable, according to people familiar with the case. Police were expected to take a statement and document the recovered shell for the ordnance unit’s inventory in the coming days.
Author note: Last updated February 2, 2026.