Loud bang traced to Tannerite detonation

If your ears still ring from a loud bang at night this week, you weren’t hearing things. The sheriff’s office in Stephens County, Georgia has determined an exact location for what all the noise was about shortly after 10 o’clock Monday night. According to Sheriff Randy Shirley, deputies pinpointed an explosion on Oak Valley Road and determined Tannerite as the substance involved. The loud bang could be heard across state lines, apparently including an area of highway 11 in Oconee County between Walhalla and Salem. WNEG quoted Shirley as saying Tannerite is an exploding target used for firearms practice. “You can buy, I believe, up to 20 pounds of Tannerite legally,” Shirley said. “It isn’t regulated by federal authorities because it doesn’t contain gunpowder or TNT. Shooters use it for target practice. How it is detonated is through the kinetic energy of a bullet. So once a bullet strikes it, it (creates) a loud explosion.”