The scream of the cutting ma- chine grinding its way through the barrel of a sub-machine gun appeared to echo the agonised last moments of the individuals whose lives that very same weapon might have ended.
For the past 24 hours it had been rumoured that the Loyalist Volunteer Force was about to decommission some weapons. The consensus was that it would hap- pen some time over the weekend.
However, the LVF took everyone by surprise when shortly after 8 a.m. it was announced that the promised handover of weapons was actually under way.
The handover was due to take place at 10 a.m. at the headquarters of the decommissioning body in Belfast. I arrived at Rosebank House just before the appointed time, to discover that my name was not on a list of journalists chosen to attend. A message to LVF intermediary Pastor Kenny McClinton quickly resolved the issue and I was ushered into a small room containing several other journalists.
After a quick briefing by a member of the decommissioning body, we were escorted into a large work- shop where the active decommissioning was to take place.
We were guided to an area of the workshop opposite two tables. On the tables was an array of weapons, ammunition and shotgun cartridges. There were nine weapons, four sub-machine guns, two rifles, two handguns and one sawn-off shotgun. Alongside were assorted ammunition, shotgun cartridges and a brown box containing six detonators.
Gen John de Chastelain, head of the decommissioning body, described the quantity of weapons as "modest but significant", significant because of the wide range of weapons handed over voluntarily by the LVF. Two weapons would be physically destroyed in our presence, then Pastor McClinton would read a prepared statement.
Shortly after 10 a.m., a member of the decommissioning body handed two sub-machine guns to men standing behind two electric cutting machines. The weapons were secured in the machines by a clamp.
At 10.08 a.m. precisely, the men pulled down their protective eye goggles and switched on the ma- chines. Seconds later the first section of the weapons had been cut and dumped unceremoniously into a plastic container. The remainder of the two weapons were disposed of in a similar fashion. The whole operation was watched impassively by Gen John de Chastelain and Pastor McClinton.
Following the destruction of the weapons, Pastor McClinton read from a prepared statement in which he paid tribute to Portadown loyalist Mark Fulton, who "proved to be the main and therefore vital ingredient in bringing off the physical destruction of LVF paramilitary armaments witnessed today".
Pastor McClinton added: "Let's give credit where credit is due."
As he finished, a sawn-off shotgun and another sub-machine gun were destroyed.
Then we were told that the remainder of the weapons were to be destroyed, witnessed only by the decommissioning body and the LVF intermediary.
Pastor McClinton said if a "humble pastor" such as himself could bring about the LVF decommissioning, then an organised political party like Sinn Fein should bring about IRA decommissioning. He said the LVF leadership was demanding that the IRA hand over its weapons in a ratio of 10 to one to yesterday's LVF handover.
The Sinn Fein senior negotiator, Mr Martin McGuinness, said he was sceptical of the LVF's sincerity. He said many people believed the newly formed loyalist paramilitary group calling itself the Orange Volunteers, was a "flag of convenience" for the LVF.