HALO Trust Cambodia responded to an unusual Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) call-out over the weekend, when a farmer excavating his land in Battambang province’s Samlout district discovered a Mk81 bomb.
The district is one of the most landmine contaminated areas in Cambodia, however finding large air-dropped bombs in this part of the country is rare. HALO sub-unit commander Da No was quickly on the scene to inspect the bomb and assess its condition. At 110kg (250 lbs), a bomb of this size is extremely dangerous to locals and poses a threat to lives and homes within a 1-kilometre radius.
Read more…
Source: Phnom Penh Post News
Sign up for Counter-IED Report Newsletter
Related:
- Japan Mine Action Service donates nearly $700,000 to the Cambodian Mine Action Center
March 4, 2021
Japan Mine Action Service (JMAS) on Tuesday donated nearly $700,000 for demining, cluster disposal, post-clearance and reconstruction support to the Cambodian Mine Action Center (CMAC). CMAC director-general Heng Ratana and resident representative of JMAS Suenada Noriyoshi signed a partnership cooperation agreement at CMAC’s headquarters on Tuesday. The agreement was signed in order to support the “Reconstruction Support ...
- Cambodia: 230kg bomb found in Phnom Penh lake
March 1, 2021
A 230 kilogramme bomb was discovered in Tamouk Lake at the outskirts of Phnom Penh on Friday, believed to have been buried there for about 50 years. Head of the Cambodian Mine Action Center (CMAC) Heng Ratana identified it as a MK82 bomb yesterday, saying it was dropped from a US warplane during the Vietnam War. “It ...
- Cambodia sees significant drop in landmine, munition casualties in last 24 years: PM
February 24, 2021
Cambodia had seen a remarkable drop in the number of casualties from landmines and explosive remnants of war (ERW) in the last 24 years, Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen said. In a message to mark the National Mine Awareness Day on Wednesday, Hun Sen said the number of casualties had declined to 65 in 2020 ...
- Cambodia: CMAC plans to breed more than 100 detection dogs in 2021
February 11, 2021
The Cambodian Mine Action Centre’s (CMAC) National Dog Centre programme plans to breed more than 100 detection dogs in different skills, from explosive detection, environmental protection, security, patrolling and wild animal protection this year. The National Dog Centre programme said around 100 dogs that have been working with CMAC’s personnel will be retiring this year and ...
- Cambodia: More aerial bombs found within 35 days
February 5, 2021
The Cambodian Mine Action Centre (CMAC) has stumbled onto more aerial bombs since early this year, despite clearing many over the years. On January 14, an MK 82 low-drag general-purpose bomb weighing 230 kilogrammes was found in Kandal province on January 14 and six days later another in Koh Kong and on February 2 at a ...
- Blue Helmets trained in robotic mine clearance
January 27, 2021
Thirty-one of Cambodia’s Blue Helmet troops are being trained to use robotics to clear mines and unexploded ordnance (UXO) before being sent on United Nations (UN) peacekeeping missions. Deputy director-general of the National Center for Peacekeeping Force, Mines and Explosive Remnants of War Clearance (NPMEC) Prak Soth said on Monday at the opening ceremony for the ...
- Daniel Craig speaks in support of Cambodian demining push
January 24, 2021
Renowned British film actor Daniel Craig – best known for his portrayal of James Bond or “Agent 007” in the last five instalments from that franchise – called on the international community to rally behind the Cambodian government in order to achieve a landmine- free Cambodia by 2025. Craig serves as the UN Global Advocate for ...
- Cambodia: Eleven families returned to land after demining work completed in Siem Reap province
January 18, 2021
A demining effort established by the joint commitment of Apopo, a registered Belgian non-governmental organisation which trains southern giant pouched rats to detect landmines and tuberculosis, and PPCBank, has allowed 11 families in Siem Reap province to return to their land after clearing the unexploded ordnances (UXOs). In August last year, in a bid to support ...
- Cambodia: Women in the thick of mine, UXO clearance
December 24, 2020
In past decades, only men were involved in work to clear mines and unexploded ordnance (UXO). But now many women are doing the job and even leading such teams. As of November 30 this year, there were 2,309 demining personnel, of whom 647 are women. So what inspired them to take on such dangerous jobs and ...
- CMAC and Apopo sign MoU on land mine detection rats
December 14, 2020
The Cambodian Mine Action Centre (CMAC) and the Anti-Persoonsmijnen Ontmijnende Product Ontwikkeling (Apopo), known in English as the Anti-Personnel Landmines Removal Product Development, have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on landmine detection rats in Cambodia. Director-General of CMAC Heng Ratana said under this MoU CMAC and Apopo will invest a total of $318,606 integrating landmine ...
- Cambodia welcomes seven new deminer puppies
December 8, 2020
The Cambodian Mine Action Centre (CMAC) in late November welcomed a new generation of deminer dogs. The puppies were delivered on November 28, according to the director general of CMAC Heng Ratana, who shared the good news on social media on November 29. “At night on November 28, our deminer dog delivered a new generation of seven ...
- US commits to help rid leftover cluster bombs in Cambodia
October 1, 2020
The United States has renewed its commitment to help rid Cambodia of cluster munitions dropped by their forces during the Vietnam War. Speaking during his visit to Ratanakiri province yesterday, which was also attended by the Mines Advisory Group and Norwegian People’s Aid, US Ambassador Patrick Murphy expressed his strong will to help Cambodia rid itself ...
- Magawa the mine-detecting rat wins PDSA Gold Medal
September 25, 2020
An African giant pouched rat has been awarded a prestigious gold medal for his work detecting land mines. Magawa has sniffed out 39 landmines and 28 unexploded munitions in his career. The UK veterinary charity PDSA has presented him with its Gold Medal for “life-saving devotion to duty, in the location and clearance of deadly landmines in ...
- Cambodia: Deminers unearth ancient lion statue
September 8, 2020
Cambodia Mine Action Centre (CMAC) director-general Heng Ratana told The Post on Tuesday that a statue of a lion was found by mine clearance experts while they were digging for a development project. It was sent to the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts last week. The team was excavating and clearing mines for a planned ...
- Cambodia bolsters mine clearance ranks by 2,000
August 4, 2020
Cambodia will bolster its demining force by 2,000 men and women and deploy a broad strategy to clear the country of all land mines and unexploded ordnance by 2025 with the backing of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Australia, New Zealand, South Korea, Switzerland and the United States are backing the effort with extra funds ...
- Australia Continues Supporting Cambodia’s Mine Clearance Efforts Until 2024
July 8, 2020
Australian government has continued its support for mine clearance activities in Cambodia by providing AU$7.6 million from 2020 to 2024 through the Clearing for Results-Phase 4 (CFR-IV) project. The information was made known by H.E. Pablo Kang, Australian Ambassador to Cambodia during a working breakfast with H.E. Ly Thuch, Cambodian Senior Minister and First Vice-President of ...
- Casualties from landmine/UXO in Cambodia down 42 pct in H1: report
June 25, 2020
Cambodia reported 36 landmine and unexploded ordnance (UXO) casualties in the first half of 2020, down 42 percent compared with 62 over the same period last year, said an official report on Thursday. During the January-June period this year, nine people were killed, down from 11 deaths over the same period last year, said the report ...
- Cambodia: New project to advance Kingdom’s mine-free goal
June 24, 2020
The Mine Advisory Group on Monday inked an agreement with the Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority to facilitate the operation of a two-year project on information management development in mine-clearance action. The assistance aims to support the Kingdom in making headway towards its goal of being a mine-free nation by 2025. During the signing ...
- New Zealand gives $3.8M to Cambodia for clearance of landmines
June 21, 2020
New Zealand has awarded Cambodia a NZ$5.9 million ($3.8 million) grant to assist mine-clearing operations for six years in Battambang, Banteay Meanchey and Pailin provinces. The grant coincided with Pailin authorities clearing 10 MD82B landmines in Pramay Kha commune in Pailin town on Saturday. Senior Minister in charge of Special Missions and secretary-general of the Cambodian Mine ...
- Cambodia: Siem Reap mine-clearing missions accomplished
June 9, 2020
Siem Reap officials and the Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority (CMAA) announced that with the help of the Peaceland Organisation, Trapeang Thma Village in Khun Ream Commune, Banteay Srei district, is now free of landmines. More than 100 mines and UXO were destroyed over 10 months. Banteay Srei district governor Khim Finan told The Post ...
- Norway continues to support demining activities in Cambodia
June 6, 2020
The Government of Norway through Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA) confirmed its commitment to continue supporting Cambodia’s mine clearance efforts by providing $5 million for the next four years. The assistance was made known by Mr. Zlatko Vezillic, Programme Manager for NPA’s Cambodia’s Mine Action and Disarmament programme while paying a farewell visit to Cambodian Senior Minister ...
- Landmine explosion kills farmer in Cambodia
May 16, 2020
A farmer was killed following an accidental mine explosion in Oddar Meanchey province. The victim was said to have been plowing on farmland in the province’s Anlong Veng district when the tragedy happened. Heng Ratana, director-general of the Cambodian Mine Action Center (CMAC) said yesterday the accident took place at 2:30 pm on Wednesday when the ...