Villagers in Kampung Chempaka, near Kuantan, feared for their lives when two fishermen found a missile-like object among their catch on Wednesday night.

Word of the discovery soon spread and police sealed off the area while waiting for the bomb disposal squad and officials from the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) to inspect the object, which was about 0.5m
long.

The villagers were relieved when bomb experts confirmed yesterday that the object was not a bomb but a blank missile, commonly used by RMAF aircraft during training exercises.