An unexploded World War II active shell was discovered by a rail track in Japan on Tuesday.

A man handed the shell to authorities at the Musselburgh fire station, East Lothian, after they explained to him that the item was still active and may explode.

According to multiple reports, a team from the Ground Self-Defense Force piled sandbags on top of the explosive and at Longniddry Bents beach. The shell was detonated around noon.

The 16-inch shell reportedly belonged to Japan's imperial forces during World War II and was discovered during excavation work.

According to BBC News, "many of [the explosives] were distributed during World War II. They were often placed in roof spaces, and used to contain fires by dispersing the fire retardant powder over the flames when triggered by intense heat."

A spokeswoman for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service told BBC News that discoveries of the explosives were not uncommon but noted that the shells are dangerous.

"Some people hold on to them as antiques from the war and some are found in lofts of old houses but they can be highly unstable and can explode," the spokeswoman told BBC News. "They're dangerous because they have a small detonator inside that reacts to heat or heavy movement so that's why it was taken away to be destroyed."

A total of 150 high speed trains at the East Japan Railway station were delayed by the discovery, setting back travel plans of around 90,000 commuters.  

According to reports, despite Japan's efforts to rebuild almost 70 years after the war, there are still large amount of unexploded ordinances in Tokyo and other areas that were heavily bombed.

Reportedly, most of the explosives were dropped by the United States, but some were buried or lost by the Japanese military during World War II.

Japan's surrender ended World War II in 1945.