Vintage bombs detonated

CEBU, Philippines - All 29 vintage bombs unearthed at the former Kawit Island, now part of the South Road Properties, including a 1,000-pound vintage bomb found months ago at the Cebu I.T. Park, were safely detonated yesterday in Toledo City.

Explosives Ordnance Disposal experts who facilitated the disposal of the 29 vintage bombs yesterday said they might just have saved Kawit Island from total destruction had the bombs been triggered to explode by the elements.

The disposal was done in the Carmen Copper Corporation’s Biga Pit, an old mining site that is only used now as mining dumps or tailings site.

Seven pits were burrowed to bury the bombs before they were detonated using C4 explosives provided by the Armed Forces of the Philippines General Headquarters.

EOD Visayas commanding officer Carlito Lachica said that each hole left a crater of about 15 meters in diameter. The pits, at first, were significantly distant.

Five EOD experts and some members of the 78th Infantry Battalion assisted in setting up the bombs. It took them four hours to set up starting from arrival at the site. The actual detonation happened at 12:45 p.m.

The bombs were detonated in three shots with one-minute intervals. The last to be detonated was the 1,000-pound vintage bomb found at the Cebu I.T. Park.

He said it is a blessing that the bombs were found because they were dangerous to the public as the bombs were still active.

The AFP also decided to dispose of them immediately because of the picric acid they contain is a substance harmful to humans who will be exposed to it. Picric acid is no longer used in modern bombs and explosives.

“If it were not because of the picric acid, we could keep the bomb for future use,” Lachica said.

They were only able to utilize 80 of the 125 C4 blocks as detonators.

Lachica said that rest of the C4 will be returned to the AFP.

The Cebu City Government said they are negotiating with private partners and government agencies to help them in surveying the whole Kawit area because they think that there are other bombs buried there somewhere. Early stories say Kawit Island used to be a Garrison or a military armory during the Spanish occupation. — /BRP (FREEMAN)