Unexploded ordnance a lethal problem

[Merlin]

This report is good, but this is after so many years. 10,000 people have been killed and 12,000 wounded, in just the six reported provinces since the war ended in 1975.

Unexploded ordnance a lethal problem in Vietnam

1 day ago [AFP] HANOI — Over a third of the land in six central Vietnamese provinces is lethally contaminated with unexploded bombs and land mines left over from the Vietnam War, a study released Friday said.

The report by Vietnam Veterans of America Foundation (VVAF) and Vietnam's Ministry of Defence, found that 10,529 people have been killed and over 12,000 wounded in the six provinces since the war ended in 1975.

They interviewed over 33,000 people over a period of almost five years for the study and mapped the areas contaminated with unexploded ordnance (UXOs). They also carried out some decontamination.

"The survey represents an important first step towards developing a national strategy to address UXO contamination in Vietnam," United States Ambassador Michael Michalak said in the text of a speech prepared for the report's launch.

The survey, which cost almost two million dollars and was funded by the US State Department, identified 3,260 contaminated areas covering 1.6 million hectares (4.0 million acres).

The Ministry of Defence, however, estimates that 6.6 million hectares are contaminated throughout Vietnam, said VVAF country director Thao Nguyen.

Quang Tri, which includes the former Demilitarised Zone, was the worst hit province, with contamination of more than 80 percent, the report found. ....

[Merlin]

Ordnance "may take centuries to clear" in Vietnam

31 July HANOI (Reuters) - At the current pace, it will take 300 years and more than $10 billion to clear Vietnam of left-over bombs, shells and mines, a humanitarian and economic scourge in parts of the country, a senior military officer said on Friday.

With aid, the agency in charge of clearing unexploded ordnance estimated that only about half could be cleared by 2050, said Phan Duc Tuan, an army colonel and deputy head of the military's engineering command. .....

Most of the casualties were men collecting scrap metal, farming or herding, the report found, but many children were also killed or injured playing with unexploded ordnance.

Tuan, whose command oversees the centre charged with clearing unexploded ordnance, said aside from the humanitarian toll, there was also a significant economic impact.

In 2008 alone it cost the government about $69.5 million to clear land for construction projects, he told a news conference.

Unexploded ordnance also hindered infrastructure projects and blocked access to natural resources, said the report, which offered the most detailed data to date on the problem in Vietnam.

[TopHatter]

This is hardly a surprise, as live ordnance from the 150 year old American Civil War is still being uncovered.

"There are an estimated 11 million acres contaminated with unexploded ordnance in the United States alone." Unlike Vietnam of course, it's largely, though not entirely, confined to firing ranges and proving grounds etc.

In France, some 500-900 tons of unexploded ordnance is disposed of, each year. The most feared UXOs are the chemical artillery shells containing mustard gas.

[Merlin]

This is ongoing in Afghanistan. It can be considered as the 'build' part of the 'clear, hold, build' strategy.

Explosive Remnants Of War Provide Employment Opportunities For Afghans

2 Aug [HuffingtonPost] Afghanistan is one of the most heavily mined countries in the world. Mines were first used in Afghanistan during the Soviet occupation (1979-1989) and have led to the death of over 70,000 Afghans in the past two decades.

Ninety percent of these mines are spread across arable land, grazing grounds and irrigation systems. The existence of these mines, a large part of which are unexploded devices, are a threat to the IDPs who are returning home and also negatively impact the agricultural output of Afghanistan.

Since October 2001, American warplanes have dropped thousands of bombs on Taliban front lines, including "cluster bombs," in which nearly 10 percent of the scattered bomblets have not exploded. The unexploded bomblets are an additional risk to the lives of the common people.

In 2008 landmines and other Explosive Remnants of War (ERW) killed or injured over 445 Afghans, an average of 37 per month. Thanks to NGO efforts from organizations like Mines Advisory Group, CARE, UNICEF, and OMAR the ERWs have now turned into a means of livelihood for many Afghan men. OMAR (Organization for Mine Clearance and Afghan Rehabilitation) has initiated a community based demining program in the Kunar district of Afghanistan.

The Kunar project is a community-based initiative, which centers on the removal of landmines and other unexploded bombs that threaten the local population. The project is managed by a small core staff from the OMAR, based in Kabul. The United States Department of State has partnered with OMAR in this community-based demining initiative.

Unlike most mine action projects in Afghanistan where trained deminers come from elsewhere to remove landmines and unexploded ordnance, community-based demining utilizes a local workforce that is recruited, trained, and employed by an Afghan NGO that oversees all aspects of the operation.

Community-based demining in Kunar furnishes jobs that keep young men employed, and perhaps most importantly, establishes trust with local leaders by removing one of the one of largest hidden killers in Afghanistan: ERW. What's more, the project is not just outsiders coming in to conduct mine clearance; it is owned by the population, thereby reinforcing local governance and reducing insurgent influence. ....

[RustyBattleship]

Remember the British TV series "Danger UXB"? It had one episode of the German "Butterfly" bombs. They were about the size and shape of a small land mine. When dropped, a tail rod ran out and opened up some fins to keep it vertical.

Well, these fins got caught in a lot of trees or slowed the bomb down enough through the branches so it didn't go off.

Allistair Cooke was the host of the show, here in America, and noted that while playing some golf with some friends, one of his foursome had a bad lie next to a tree. When he struck the ball with a wedge, a Butterfly Bomb in the rough went off. Fortunately, over the years, enough earth and grass had grown over it so his friend was not seriously hurt.

The most amazing thing that he pointed out was that a lot of people didn't know what they were when found among bushes or gardens. So they used them for doorstops, decorative items, etc.

After the episode aired in England, DOZENS of them were reported to be still in the homes and ordnance disposal experts had to remove them.