RESIDENTS and workers in one of Kiribati’s most densely populated communities are now safer after a joint operation to safely dispose of hundreds of World War II unexploded ordnance on Betio.
New Zealand troops worked with the Kiribati Police Service to move approximately 300 items by road and sea from Bonnyman’s Bunker to an isolated, uninhabited sandbar for safe disposal.
Some of the items were in such a severely degraded condition that they had to be detonated inside the bunker, requiring 7000 nearby residents to be evacuated.
Numerous sandbags were placed inside the bunker. The majority of the blast and fragmentation was contained by the heavily constructed bunker.
Lieutenant Colonel Cameron Wright, said the operation was a great example of New Zealand working with Pacific partners to safely dispose of dangerous items left behind after World War II.
“We would like to acknowledge the leadership of the Government of Kiribati, the support and assistance of the Kiribati Police Service, and the Betio community, which enabled us to successfully carry out the operation.”
The NZDF and Kiribati Police Service will continue to cooperate closely on EOD issues, including building Kiribati’s EOD expertise to safely identify and secure any future items discovered. New Zealand deployed a Lockheed C-130J aircraft and crew, personnel from the Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) Squadron, 2nd Engineer Regiment Zodiac operators, and medical personnel deployed for the operation.
