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Massive War-Era Bomb Uncovered, Defused in Central Vietnam

Earlier this week, a UK-based organization managed to defuse the largest unexploded ordnance (UXO) ever discovered in central Quang Tri province.

Mines Advisory Group (MAG) deactivated the 1,900-pound bomb on Wednesday, two days after it was discovered in a local family's cassava garden, reports Thanh Nien. While attempting to level the garden, workers happened upon the naval gun shell one meter below ground and just 100 meters from the tracks of the national railroad.

The bomb, which measured 1.3 meters long and 0.4 meters in diameter, was then relocated and successfully defused. Local authorities said it was the biggest UXO ever found in the province, which is saying something: Quang Tri was one of the most heavily bombed provinces in Vietnam during the war.

In Quang Tri alone, UXO has killed or maimed at least 8,000 people since the end of the American conflict. Thanh Nien says that as many as 100 UXOs of various shapes and sizes are found everyday in Quang Tri, according to Reuters.

[Photo via Zing]

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