The grenade was exploded by a military bomb expert the day after tip workers stumbled across the device on January 27.

Senior Sergeant Trevor Evans said while the device might have been put into the rubbish by mistake, everyone needed to be aware of what to do if they came across something suspicious.

“If anybody was to find any explosive device, whether it be military or any other explosive device on their property that they’re not sure of, we ask that they contact us immediately,” he said.

“Leave the area and then we will assess the situation and create a cordon so that members of the public won’t be injured by anything that may occur from these devices.”