320kg bomb defused in Lam Dong province
A 320kg bomb was deactivated by sappers in Da Lat city, the Central Highlands province of Lam Dong, on October 5.
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The US army used more than 15 million tonnes of bombs and mines during the war in Vietnam, four times the amount used in World War II. As a result, Vietnam has been listed among the countries most contaminated with unexploded ordnances (UXOs).
According to the State Steering Committee for the national action programme on settling post-war bomb and landmine impacts, about 800,000 tonnes of UXOs are scattered across 6.6 million hectares or 20.12% of Vietnam’s land, mainly in the central region.
Preliminary statistics show that UXOs have claimed more than 42,000 lives and left about 62,000 injured - mostly rural people and children - in Vietnam over the last four decades.
