27 artillery shells successfully defused in Quang Tri province

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The 105-mm shells, produced in the US, were found in the garden of a resident in Pa Tang commune. They weigh 19 kg each, with 5 of them having fuses.

All the explosive devices were then transferred to a warehouse before they are defused.

The team of Peace Trees Vietnam, the first foreign organization signing up for removing unexploded ordnance in Vietnam, said the items could have exploded anytime if hit.

All the explosive devices were then transferred to a warehouse before they are defused. It was the first time such a large number of shells had been unearthed in Pa Tang commune.

Quang Tri province was one of the hardest-hit provinces in the war. Nearly 400,000ha of the 461,000ha province still contain bombs and mines. Every year, some 2,300-2,500ha of land is cleared.

Since the beginning of 2017 to date, Peace Trees Vietnam has found and removed 2,500 explosive devices.

An estimated 800,000 tonnes of unexploded bombs and mines leftover from wartime are buried over 20 percent of the country’s territory, mainly in the central region, according to the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs. 

Leftover wartime bombs and mines have claimed about 42,130 lives and injured 62,160 others across Vietnam. It is estimated it will take 100 years and US$10 billion to clear post-war mines remaining in Vietnam, the ministry said.