Categories
News Blog

NEWS ROUNDUP December 2014

Dec2014News

December 21, 2014
UXO also found on Managaha (Marianas Islands)


AS a precautionary measure, the Bureau of Environmental and Coastal Quality will be inviting an unexploded ordnance or UXO expert to assist in the Managaha drum cleanup project, BECQ Administrator Frank Rabauliman told Variety in an interview.
Since November, BECQ has been conducting a cleanup of buried drums and batteries on the famous tourist spot.
The discovery of mounds and buried drums was first reported by the Division of Fish and Wildlife and the Historical Preservation Office during a survey of the Shearwater bird breeding ground in 2010. More at Marianas Variety.

December 19, 2014
Japan and United States Clear Unexploded Ordnance in Laos


In the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, a large number of bombs dropped during the Indochina Wars still remain unexploded throughout the country, hindering the country’s economic and social development. Against this backdrop, Japan and the United States will contribute to clearing unexploded ordnance (UXO) in Laos and will keep each other informed of their progress as part of the Japan-U.S. cooperation for the clearance of landmines and UXO in Southeast Asia.
Specifically, Japan has decided to provide necessary assistance (e.g. support for personnel costs) of up to 705,242 U.S. dollars for the UXO clearance operations underway in Champasack and Saravane provinces in the southern part of Laos. The United States is also providing financial assistance for the UXO clearance operations in southern Laos. There is more to read from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan.

December 18, 2014
Workers hit bombs, bullets while building school in southern Vietnam


Workers in the Mekong Delta province of Bac Lieu have stopped building a primary school after stumbling upon a buried cache of war-era munitions.
Nguyen Van Vinh, head of the Project Management Department of Gia Rai District, said Wednesday that they have asked the province’s military to clear the area before resuming work.
A source from the Bac Lieu Military Command said they have collected a directional mine, numerous rifle bullets, and an 82-mm mortar round.
More to read about leftovers from the US war in SE Asia at Thanh Nien Daily.

December 17, 2014
U.S. Conventional Weapons Destruction Programs Reduce Threats from World War II-era Munitions


For more than 70 years, communities across the islands of the South Pacific have faced hidden hazards from buried and abandoned bombs, mortars, artillery shells, and unexploded ordnance dating back to World War II. Since 2009, the Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement in the Department of State’s Bureau of Political-Military Affairs has invested more than $5.6 million in support of conventional weapons destruction programs in the Pacific Islands.
Old and degrading munitions pose a safety hazard as well as an environmental challenge. U.S. efforts reduce the humanitarian impact of abandoned World War II-era munitions caches across the region by funding survey and clearance operations as well as training missions. More info available from the US Department of State.

December 17, 2014
UXO kills herder in Darfur’s East Jebel Marra


A young shepherd was killed, along with 17 of his sheep, in the area of Mashrou Abu Zeid, East Jebel Marra, in an explosion today.
“Early this (Wednesday) afternoon, we suddenly heard an explosion,” a listener told Radio Dabanga from Mashrou Abu Zeid. “When we arrived at the place, we found Mahjoub Suleiman Saleh (15) ripped to pieces, as well as 17 of his sheep.” Read more at the ever-interesting Radio Dabanga.

December 8, 2014
The European Union will provide up to EUR 60 million in grants to Laos in 2014-2015


The European Union (EU) has announced it has allocated up to EUR 60 million (KIP 60 billion, USD 75 million) to Laos under its bilateral cooperation programme over the period 2014-2015 to improve basic education and food and nutrition security and strengthen good governance as well as the rule of law and human rights.
The EU will also continue to assist Laos with the clearance of Unexploded Ordnance (UXO). Read the details at the EU website.

December 8, 2014
ANAMA demined 3.5 million square meters in November


3,542,127 sq m area was inspected and cleared of mines and unexploded ordinances (UXO) in Azerbaijan in November, 2014.
Azerbaijan National Agency for Mine Action (ANAMA) told APA that 57 UXOs and an antitank mine were found and disarmed during the operations.
One mine/UXO accident was recorded in November. There’s a bit more to read from the Azeri Press Agency.

December 3, 2014
Unexploded ordnance endangers Jordan Valley residents

On Nov. 23, Ahmed al-Sheikh from the village of Bardala in the occupied Jordan Valley, near the Jordan River, was killed by an exploding mine left behind by the Israeli army following military maneuvers in the region. Sheikh was the head a family of five, his youngest son being only 5 years old.
Mahmoud Saleh Sawaftah (Abu Saed), the head of Bardala’s village council in Area C, told Al-Monitor that Sheikh was a shepherd and died of head and chest wounds when the mine detonated while he was trying to bury it, fearing for the safety of the children and other shepherds in the region.
The Israeli army holds periodic military exercises in the Jordan Valley involving the use of warplanes and live ammunition. Read more at the Al-Monitor.

December 1, 2014
Equipment, funding hamper cluster bomb cleanup efforts in Laos

Shortfalls in equipment and funding are the biggest challenges facing Laos as it struggles to remove the threat of unexploded ordnance (UXO) left from war decades past, state-run media Vientiane Times reported Monday.
The findings were among those released at the National Regulatory Authority for UXO (NRA) plenary meeting held in Vientiane. Read more at Global Post.

Categories
News Blog

NEWS ROUNDUP March 2014

March2014News

March 31, 2014
Two Cambodians killed by mines

A 12-year-old boy and a 37-year-old farmer lost their lives over the weekend in UXO explosions in Battambang and Pailin provinces.
Read more at The Phnom Penh Post.

 

March 18, 2014
USAF EOD blows up beach bomb

Airmen from 1st Special Operations Civil Engineer Squadron explosive ordnance disposal destroyed an unexploded ordnance near the beach, which a jogger discovered at Perdido Key, Fla., March 12, 2014. Get the lowdown from Hurlburt AFB.

March 18, 2014
Cambodian construction workers find US bomb

Clearance workers removed an American MK82 bomb from a construction site in Kandal province. Records show UXO has killed three children in Cambodia so far in 2014. More from the Phnom Penh Post.

March 17, 2014
Vietnam calls for int’l help in clearing wartime UXO

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has asked international sponsors to join Vietnam’s efforts to rid the country of unexploded ordnance (UXO) that still kills and injures thousands of people every year.
The PM was speaking at an international conference organized by Committee 504, a national agency tasked with clearing UXO, in Hanoi on Friday. Read more here.

March 15, 2014
Germany funds UXO clearance in Thua Thien-Hue, Vietnam

The German Ministry of Foreign Affairs will support the central province of Thua Thien-Hue with EUR257,911 (US$359,940) to implement a project to clear unexploded ordnance (UXOs) in A Luoi district.
In 2014, apart from clearing bombs and mines left over from wars in the district, the project will develop information management tools, build a bomb and mine database, and implement the Information Management System for Mine Action in the province. More here.

March 15, 2014
UXOs kill 1,500 Vietnamese every year

Accidents caused by unexploded ordnance (UXOs) left over in Vietnam during the wartime have killed more than 42,000 people and injured about 62,000 others in Vietnam since 1975, according to preliminary statistics.
This means UXO-related accidents kill 1,500 people and injure 2,300 others per year. Read the rest at Tuoi Tre News.

March 13 2014
Work Begins on UXO Clearance at GE Site in UK

Work has commenced as part of unexploded ordnance clearance work, off Charleton Road, Montrose by GE Oil and Gas. The currently undeveloped grassland forms part of a former Royal Air Force Airfield (RAF Montrose).
A specialist clearance contractor, BACTEC, under the oversight of our environmental consultants, MWH, has been working on site from the week commencing Monday, February 24, for an estimated 6 weeks. A little more to read here.

March 12, 2014
One mine explosion occurred in Azerbaijan in February

The news was announced by the Azerbaijan National Agency for Mine Action (ANAMA) on March 11.
ANAMA said about 912,897 square meters of land were inspected and cleared of landmines and unexploded ordnance (UXO) in Azerbaijan in February; about 408 UXOs and 11 anti-tank mines were found in the country as a result of the operations. See more at Azernews.

March 11, 2014
UXO Discovered in Ft. Meade, Maryland

Utility workers discovered an Unexploded Ordnance (UXO) in a Fort Meade housing area Tuesday afternoon during scheduled maintenance work.
An UXO team responded to the call and determined the device was a World War II-era mortar training round and that it was inactive. A bit more to read at WUSA.

March 11, 2014
1,912,897 sq m area cleared of mines and unexploded ordinances in Azerbaijan

1,912,897 sq m area was inspected and cleared of mines and unexploded ordinances (UXO) by Azerbaijan National Agency for Mine Action (ANAMA) in February, 2014, Press service of the Agency told APA.
408 UXOs and 11 antitank mines were found and disarmed. 1 Mine/UXO accident was recorded last month. Read more at APA.