Unexploded legacies of war dangerous a century later; modern techniques are best defense against injury or death

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Sep 03, 2015, 08:54 ET

LENOIR CITY, Tenn., Sept. 3, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Unexploded bombs, artillery shells, and other munitions are legacies of war that can remain deadly for years, decades – even more than a century.

When legacy explosives are found, modern techniques and professionals are in the best position to protect people and property, says an official with Sterling Global Operations (SGO), an international company that conducts demining and munitions management.

An unexploded World War II era-bomb found (marked with a red flag) and rendered harmless by Sterling Global Operations several years ago in Myrtle Beach South Carolina. SGO, an international stability operations company that provides munitions management and mitigation among its services, dealt with eight, 250-pound bombs some 500 meters from a Myrtle Beach child development center, private residences, and a church. Many forgotten World War I and II-era former firing and training ranges, once in...

"It's a problem around the world as well as in America, where World War I and II-era firing and bombing ranges may have long faded from memory, and sometimes even from maps," said Nick Iaiennaro, an SGO official.

Some examples of the problem:

On Aug. 9, 2015, British authorities evacuated an east London neighborhood until a German World War II 500-pound bomb was defused.
On May 27, 2015, German authorities evacuated 20,000 people from a portion of the city of Cologne to detonate an unexploded U.S. World War II bomb.
In April 2014, seven people died in Bangkok, Thailand when a World War II bomb exploded in a scrap metal warehouse.
In June 2013, a man gardening at his Kansas home unearthed a still-live World War I-era artillery shell.
In 2008, Florida subdivision residents near Orlando International Airport learned their homes were built above the remains of a World War II bombing range which news reports said wasn't thoroughly cleared.

Some 1.5 billion artillery shells were fired on World War I's western front alone, and World War II saw more than 2.7 million tons of bombs dropped just in Europe.

"Older explosives can be even more volatile," Iaiennaro said. "They deteriorate over time, and that can make them highly unstable.

"SGO-mitigated explosives items from U.S. military bases and foreign countries would fill 400 American football fields," Iaiennaro said. "We've detected, removed or destroyed some 85,000 tons of unexploded remnants of war in Afghanistan and Iraq alone.

"In Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, we dealt with eight, 250-pound bombs some 500 meters from a child development center, private residences, and a church. We've cleared several former U.S. ranges that once were in the middle of nowhere, but today they're in, or near, populated areas.

Lenoir City, Tenn.-based SGO's steps in such situations are, he said:

Determine munition type and hazard
Decide on blast and fragmentation protection measures to protect lives and nearby property
After disposal, determine how the explosive came to be there, which may indicate the presence of additional explosives

"Any suspected munition should be reported to authorities immediately," Iaiennaro said. "Thinking about it as a souvenir or a dud can result in a tragedy."

SGO employees mitigate explosives' danger in some of the world's most hazardous places to help save lives and property, Iaiennaro said.

"Based on the realities of war and of history, this work will still need to be done 100 years from now."

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SOURCE Sterling Global Operations