Mark Buswell, MAG’s Technical Director, has been inside Gaza for two weeks. As part of DFID’s (the UK Department for International Development) response to the Gaza humanitarian crisis, Mark (pictured above right) is working alongside the UN’s Mine Action Service to help clear explosives and make life safe again for ordinary Gazans. He talks about his latest experiences:
“Today was very interesting, with a number of technical challenges.
“A number of large aircraft bombs, high explosive and white phosphorous projectiles have been gathered in an area inside Gaza City itself.
“This pile of explosives created a big problem. Storing white phosphorous right next to 7,500 kilogrammes of high explosive is definitely not a good idea. There’s a risk it could ignite, causing an explosion which could damage a city centre area the size of the City of London [2.6 square kilometres].
“If there was a pile of explosives that size in the UK, then you would have to evacuate everyone within the area – not an option in Gaza. It was clear something had to be done – and quickly – so early this morning, we got the go-ahead to secure the white phosphorous.
“Medical teams and the fire service were on stand-by. The UN provided large water canisters and then, very carefully, we moved and separated the white phosphorous into the containers, reducing the potential for it to ignite. The containers were then filled and covered with sand.
“The next phase of this operation will be the removal and systematic destruction of the items, in a mutually acceptable location away from the civilian community.
“So far I’ve checked 37 out of the priority 40 schools for the threat of explosives. I have also been checking the main infrastructure routes throughout the Gaza Strip, as well as two medical clinics, a water treatment plant and an industrial plant.
“To be honest, we don’t know the true scale of the problem here and we won’t know that until a lot of the debris has been cleared.
“I have worked in lots of different conflict areas around the world – Cambodia, Africa, and I spent three and a half years in Iraq. When I arrive to start work in a new place, I don’t consider the personal threat or danger, I just see it as a new technical challenge. That’s my main focus."
This article first appeared on the DFID website.
Links:
- Emergency response: update (2)
- Emergency response in Gaza: update
- Audio: Saving lives in Gaza
- MAG responds to Gaza crisis
- DFID website [external link]
- UNMAS website [external link]
- Click on Tags below for related articles
10 February 09
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