Poland has been clearing explosive remnants of war from its territory since the end of World War II, according to experts with the International Committee of the Red Cross. From 1944 to 2003, more than 96 million pieces of explosive ordnance had been removed at an estimated cost of $866 million, the experts wrote, and from 1944 to 1989, unexploded ordnance claimed the lives of more than 4,000 people in Poland. In the field of bomb disposal, any procedure taken to render a munition safe also carries the risk that the item will explode, no matter how closely and properly those procedures are followed. For a bomb like this one, divers would most likely have surveyed the munition underwater, taking measurements and carefully sketching out key identifying features. But rapidly burning explosives still contained inside a thick steel casing can explode just the same, even if additional holes are created to vent the gases produced by the fire.

Source: International New York Times October 14, 2020 23:48 UTC