At 6 am we had a meeting on Torit airstrip to plan the day’s activities. Community Liaison (CL) staff had informed the Administrator of the team’s planned activities the previous day, but it was necessary to inform all the various offices such as military intelligence, the police, the UN, air traffic control – 12 offices altogether. The plan was to clear the area around the airstrip and destroy the items in a controlled demolition at 2pm.
The CL staff drove off to inform the authorities and the Mine Action Team (MAT) started clearance. CL and Landmine Impact Survey (LIS) reports contain detailed information including grid references.
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| A Mine Action Team moves unexploded ordnance before transporting it to demolition site. The ordnance was reported to MAG Community Liaison staff by villagers |
From each dangerous item, or group of items found, the MAT technicians walked in a line one metre apart and visually checked the ground for 50 metres in each direction. Within a few hours, 50 x 60mm mortars, 128 x 82mm mortars and a rocket-propelled grenade had been collected.
A car full of UN officers arrived and handed us other dangerous area reports that people had given to them. Ivica explained that these would be dealt with quickly. The CL staff reported on their radios that all was going according to plan and nearly all the relevant people had been informed. Staff deployed in all directions to explain what was happening and to clear people and livestock from the area. It was a big area, at least two kilometres by one kilometre.
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| United Nations observers report dangerous areas to MAG |
Ivica started to prepare the demolition. He decided to blow just the 50 x 60mm mortar bombs, as he didn’t want to do too big a demolition in such a populated area. A hole was dug and the mortars were carefully placed inside making sure the sides of the mortars touched each other firmly to make sure they would all detonate in the explosion. Another UN car arrived with a UN officer who was interested in the demolition process. Ivica let him watch from a safe distance.
After checking that the area was clear of people and animals, Ivica began placing the explosive charges. Then it was time for me and the UN officer to leave. Safety operating procedures dictate that only one person can be present when the detonator is attached. We headed back following the electrical cable that ran from the demolition point to the firing point a safe distance away. The UN officer’s car was parked nearby. He had left his lights on. The battery was flat!
I knew that there wasn’t a safety issue, as Ivica wouldn’t place the detonator until the area was reported to be clear by all the sentries with radios. Also, he would have to pass us to reach the firing point to set off the demolition. The UN officer was a bit worried though! I called some MAG staff on the radio and a Land Rover arrived almost immediately. We bump-started the UN car and the officer, pale with embarrassment, sped off.
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| Three, two, one… Boom! |
Ivica arrived at the firing point a few minutes later and after further checks wired up the exploder. Then he waited again for all the sentries to report ‘all clear’ on their radios and, fingers ready on the exploder, he counted down: three, two, one… Boom!
“That should let people know MAG is here,” he said with a chuckle.
In the afternoon the team travelled around the town dealing with high priorities reported by the CL team. All the items found could safely be moved so there were no more demolitions today.
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