Across Quang Tri province in central Vietnam, the call could come at any moment. A suspected explosive device has been found – perhaps in a rice paddy, a garden, or near a school. Within minutes, a MAG emergency response team is on the move.
Trained to act fast and work with precision, MAG’s mobile explosive ordnance disposal teams are the frontline response in one of the most heavily bombed areas of Vietnam. More than five decades after the end of the war, unexploded ordnance still lies hidden in the soil, posing a daily threat to those who live and work there.
MAG’s mobile units operate across Quang Tri, responding to emergency reports from farmers, families, and local officials. Each call is treated with urgency. Each response has the potential to save lives.
“Most of the explosive items we find are uncovered during farming or construction,” explains Vinh, Team Leader of MAG’s mobile unit in Quang Tri.
“Nearly 40% of our calls are in residential areas or close to public roads and buildings. That means people are still living and working on land contaminated with dangerous remnants of war – often without knowing it.”
The mobile teams respond to an average of 15 emergencies each week. The pace is relentless, but the goal is always the same: locate, remove, and destroy dangerous items before they can do harm.
In one such case, a farmer named Luong was planting acacia trees near his home when his shovel struck something solid. Just three metres from the roadside, hidden in the grass, was a rusted mortar round.
“At first I considered calling a friend in the army,” Luong said. “But I saw a MAG truck drive by with the hotline on the side. I called that number instead. I trusted that MAG would handle it quickly.”
“Each time I find an explosive item, I fear for my children, my neighbours, and myself. It’s a constant worry when we work our land. But we have no other choice but to dig lightly when we cultivate.”
The mobile team arrived quickly, securing and removing the explosive just metres from where families were drying rice and working in their yards.
“When I saw MAG arrive, I finally breathed a sigh of relief. That round could’ve harmed so many people, especially children.”
Elsewhere, Nhung and her husband were preparing their front yard to plant vegetables when they uncovered four metal objects, barely 20 centimetres beneath the soil.
“We stopped immediately. If we’d dug harder – or if a child had been playing there – I don’t want to think about what could have happened,” Nhung said.
She remembered the provincial reporting hotline, found MAG’s number on Facebook, and made the call. The team arrived and safely removed two mortars and two grenades from the yard — just steps from a road.
“We feel so much safer now. At least there’s one place we can trust, one place where we can plant, grow, and not worry.”
Another call came from Hoan, a local resident who noticed something unusual near a kindergarten fence – bright green and yellow, lying in the grass. It was a grenade, intact and dangerously close to where 180 children and teachers gathered daily.
In Vietnam, children are among the most vulnerable groups affected by unexploded ordnance left from the war. Statistics show that they make up most of the casualties resulting from bomb-related accidents.
“It looked like a toy. That’s what scared me most,” she said. “A child could’ve picked it up.”
She searched online for MAG’s hotline and made the call. The mobile team responded promptly, safely removed the grenade, and destroyed it at the province’s central demolition site later that day.
“It was such a relief to see it gone,” she said.
Though every emergency is different, MAG’s mobile teams bring the same care and commitment to each one. Once an item is secured, it is transported to a controlled demolition site and safely destroyed – often within hours of the initial report.
Since launching emergency operations in Vietnam in 1999, MAG’s mobile teams have carried out more than 12,600 responses and safely destroyed over 62,000 explosive items. Their work is possible thanks to support from the US Department of State – and the trust of the communities they serve.
“Even after all these years, so much of this land is still unsafe,” says Vinh. “But every item we remove brings people one step closer to safety.”
Today and every day in Quang Tri, MAG’s mobile teams continue to move quickly, calmly, and effectively, ensuring that every call is answered, every device removed, and every community made safer.
Learn more about MAG’s work in Vietnam here.
