Cannonball or shot put? Man finds 10-pound metal ball, breaks toe kicking it

Whether it was 10-pound metal ball used in track and field or a cannonball, a Rock Hill man broke his toe trying to kick it.

Police in Rock Hill responded Saturday, with officers and then the bomb squad, after a man on Summers Glen found what he and his wife believed was a 10-pound cannonball near a storm drain, police said.

The man initially thought the ball was a dog toy and kicked it. He broke his toe the incident report says.

Officers arrived and called in the bomb squad to secure the ball and transport it back to the Rock Hill Police Department where it is being tested by local and state police to determine if it’s a cannonball or a shot used in track and field competition, said Capt. Mark Bollinger, spokesman for the department.

The ball, believed to be metal or iron, does not have severe pitting or other markings of deterioration that would indicate it being decades old or older, Bollinger said, but testing is not yet complete.

This story was originally published July 31, 2017 at 1:25 PM with the headline "Cannonball or shot put? Man finds 10-pound metal ball, breaks toe kicking it."