Taking care of some old business

SMNCD Warner kneels next to a 250lb WWII unexploded bomb, found while his ship, Diamantina was on deployment recently in the Solomon Islands.

By SMNCD Mitch Warner

The Clearance Divers of HMAS Diamantina (LCDR Pete Bartlett) have been keeping themselves busy during the ship’s most recent deployment in the Solomon Islands Utilising their skills, the clearance divers have been rendering assistance to the local inhabitants in the disposal of WWII ordnance.

Some of the tasks performed included disposal of bombs, grenades and artillery projectiles left over from WWII battles.

Many locals, including children, have been injured by such items in the past and were very grateful for the help.

On Taro Is, in one of the country’s northern provinces, the team disposed of two 250lb bombs, both of which were threats to the local population.

One was located in the centre of the locals’ gardening patch, while the other was heavily embedded in the island’s surrounding reef and submerged during high tide.

For the disposal of the first bomb, the Royal Solomon Islands Police moved the locals to a nearby island for the duration of the setting up and initiation of the explosives.

The crater from the bomb was approximately 5m wide and 2m deep.

The second was another WWII British bomb, heavily encrusted in some coral lying in the reef. A child, who was tossing it against a tree, had found a pineapple-style grenade, with the cocking handle missing. An unknown projectile, possibly three-inch, was also found at Taro.

The grenade and projectile were placed next to the bomb and all three were destroyed by non-electrical means.

In all instances, a high order explosion occurred when the ordnance was detonated indicating that the bombs were still very much alive and a possible threat to the local inhabitants.

In the case of the reef bomb, the force of the explosion was sent downwards, the result being very little shrapnel.

Apart from the EOD aid, the CDs have been involved in boarding and landing parties and providing assistance to the AFP with their investigations.

On the lighter side, the team have also located a previously uncharted B- 24 wreck almost completely intact and conducted numerous data dives in areas where some of the charts date back to the mid-1800s.

Having completed only half of the deployment so far, the team is eagerly looking forward to the many varied tasks ahead which are sure to come their way.

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