The nuclear weapon was lost near Tybee Island, Georgia in the 1950s. With the help of amateur bomb hunters, Rea discovered documents that showed the weapon might still be dangerous, due to a small quantity of plutonium believed to be inside. These reports were rejected by the United States Department of Defense but the United States Air Force reopened the investigation, first in 2001 and again in 2005. Both recent investigations maintain the weapon is lost and no danger to the public.