Accident Places Focus on UXO Safety

[unhappycamper]

Accident Places Focus on UXO Safety
Army News Service | November 19, 2007


FORT RUCKER, Ala -- An unexploded ordnance accident this month claimed the life of a Soldier, and an Army safety officer said the incident is as a deadly reminder to be extra cautious when handling munitions.

The Soldier was digging in front of his quarters when he discovered a yellow cylinder resembling a caulk tube. Once the Soldier brought the tube out of the ground, he banged it against a wall to knock the dirt off and determine what he was holding. The device, which turned out to be a BLU-97/B Combined Effects Bomb, exploded, killing the Soldier and wounding another.

The fatal accident happenned this month in Iraq, but officials at the U.S. Army Combat Readiness/Safety Center say the danger exists elsewhere across the Army.

The BLU-97 submunitions are yellow, soda-can-sized bomblets that are dispensed in large numbers to attack "soft" area targets. The bomblet case is made of scored steel designed to break into about 300 preformed ingrain fragments for defeating light armor and personnel.

The body of the BLU-97 is cylindrical in shape, about 20 centimeters long and has a 6 centimeter diameter. However, military and foreign munitions can come in a variety of types, sizes and shapes and may not be easy to recognize. They include, but are not limited to, small-arms ammunition, projectiles, cartridges, bombs, rockets, pyrotechnics, grenades, blasting caps, fuzes, simulators and raw explosives.


Rest of article at: http://www.military.com/features/0,15240,156621,00.html