WESTERLY, R.I. (AP) — A mysterious metal object discovered a few weeks ago off a Rhode Island beach has been removed and carted away in pieces.

Media tweets show a crew used an excavator Thursday on Westerly's East Beach to dig up the circular metal object.

The object puzzled beachgoers and had posed a hazard to swimmers. All that could be seen until its removal were several metal legs and concrete. Taylor Swift's oceanfront mansion overlooks the beach.

The object came up in pieces Thursday. Its metal pieces were several feet long, and wires were running through them.

Oceanographers previously...