Magnet fishing is alot of fun

He found a bomb, but now Ronan Tilstra (12) is no longer allowed to fish magnetically in the Oude IJssel. Finding a new place in Doetinchem seems impossible.

His first role: nothing. His second litter: nothing. His third throw: nothing. The magnetic fisherman Ronan Tilstra (12) is almost desperate on the edge of the fish pond in the Sportpark Zuid.

Nowadays he throws out his magnet almost everywhere where water flows in Doetinchem. It offers very little. In the Oude IJssel he brought up something with every throw.

Magnet fishing

The tiger walking there is a popular place for several – mostly young – magnetic fishermen. Ronan could be found there almost every week for a year and a half, more often in warm weather. Sometimes his friends Meral (12) and Jojakim (14) went with them. The guys showed up all. Cycling, even a phone and Ronan’s most beautiful find: the bomb.

Two weeks later, the discovery of the war explosives is clear in his mind. “I thought: This thing looks very much like a bomb,” says the young Doetinchemmer soberly.

The boys took a picture, but then threw the thing back into the water in shock. “Super stupid,” Ronan looks back on it now. “I would definitely not do that again. I should have just left it on the magnet and reported it immediately. “

I like that you can all find different things. It’s good for the environment too

Ronan

“50 percent chance that it will start”

While the bomb was already on the floor of the Oude IJssel, Ronan told his mother the story at home. The alarm bells went off at the police and the Explosives Ordnance Disposal Service (EOD). “Dangerous for life,” replied an EOD expert. “If you get something like that out of the water, there’s a 50 percent chance it will go off.”

Magnet fishing was not officially banned in the Oude IJssel. “But the police told us that it was very unwise,” says mother Rian Tilstra. “He no longer allows me to go there with his magnets.” The protagonist – who says he wasn’t afraid for a moment – hears it softly. “It’s a shame, but I can understand it.”

“Just crap”

Even so, Ronan has no intention of permanently saving his hobby. With his two magnets on long ropes in his backpack, he is now driving through the city. He tried the different waters of De Huet: “Just mud.” An attempt in the water of the Overstegen Park brought a small success: a cent that dates back to the Golden Age.

It doesn’t come close to what Ronan saw of magnet fishermen on the internet. The videos on YouTube prompted him to buy two magnets in 2018. “I like that you can find different things,” he says. “It’s good for the environment too. You clean it in places where the church can’t come.”

“A lot less fun now”

This afternoon he only removes the bottom of the fish pond in Sportpark Zuid from a fish swimmer and something that looks like barbecue tongs. His heart doesn’t beat faster. “It’s a lot less fun,” concludes the young magnetic fisherman. He won’t be returning here anytime soon. “Where do I have to go then? I really have no idea. “