Remains of a nuclear missile are found in a garage

Garages are often cluttered with dusty boxes of heirlooms, untouched exercise equipment or a multitude of tools.

But what about a piece of a Cold War nuclear missile?

Bomb squad members in Bellevue, Washington, were called in Thursday to inspect parts of a military-grade missile in a resident's garage.

Elements of the larger, intact missile, such as the warhead, were missing and authorities deemed the piece inert and safe, police said in a statement. press release on Friday.

An Air Force museum in Dayton, Ohio, contacted police in Bellevue on Jan. 31 to report that a resident had offered to donate the missile, which belonged to his deceased neighbor.

The resident was put in charge of his neighbor's property, according to Bellevue police, and said his neighbor originally purchased the rocket at an estate sale.

Police were unable to contact the neighbor's family and did not identify the Bellevue man out of respect for his privacy, said Officer Seth Tyler, spokesperson for the Bellevue Police Department.

The next day, the man was “surprised” to hear from police because he had not called them but invited the bomb squad to inspect the rocket debris, Officer Tyler said.

Squad members identified the missile as a Douglas AIR-2 Genie missile, designed to carry a 1.5-kiloton nuclear warhead.

First deployed in 1957, the Genie was the world's first nuclear-armed missile designed to destroy aircraft targets, and was the most powerful interceptor missile fielded by the US Air Force. according to Boeing.

In 1954, Douglas Aircraft began work on “a small, unguided, nuclear-armed air-to-air missile,” according to Boeing. Douglas Aircraft built more than 1,000 Genie rockets before production ceased in 1962.

It was clear the rocket remnant posed no threat as it was missing its warhead and contained no rocket fuel, Officer Tyler said.

“It was basically just a rusted piece of metal at that point,” he said. “An artifact, in other words.”

Since the army didn't ask for it back, the police left it with the man to donate.

It was not immediately clear whether the missile remains would be destined for the Ohio museum, and attempts to reach the National Museum of the United States Air Force in Dayton on Sunday were unsuccessful.

Given Bellevue's proximity to Joint Base Lewis-McChord, a large military base, Officer Tyler said it was not unusual for police to respond to calls about hand grenades or other unexploded ordnance.

But a Cold War-era missile would be a first, said Officer Tyler, who has worked for the department for 18 years. The department also seemed to believe it would be the last, referencing Elton John's classic song “Rocket Man” in a social media after.

“And we think it will be a long time before we get another call like this,” Bellevue police said.