Friendly Fire Kills Cat

Sarah, a 14-year-old cat, was lying on a bed in the Angle family's home in New Jersey licking it's parts when a fragment of a two-pound artillery shell crashed through the roof and landed on the bed.

Sarah was severely injured and the family had to have her euthanised.

The shell was fired off from the Picatinny Arsenal, the U.S. Army's weapons research facility in Picatinny, 2.5 to 3 miles away.

"We heard the explosion, felt the concussion and a few seconds later the piece came through the roof," homeowner Fred Angle said.

The shrapnel came sailing through the air in an arc punching a hole in the roof the size of a fist, into the bedroom where 10-year-old Cassandra sleeps, luckily it was 2.30 pm and Cassandra had been picked up early for a playdate or she'd be sitting on the bed.

Base spokesman Peter Rowlands said, "We deeply regret what happened and also the effect it's had on the family, the loss of their pet, and also the damage to their home, and just the fright they experienced, normally we don't hit anything so this was a little bittersweet."

Weapons testing at the base has been suspended pending the outcome of an investigation and Army officials will be back out at the house soon to talk about compensation for the family and to take pictures for their blogs.