Authorities reported Sunday that thousands of pieces of unexploded ordnance from Cambodia’s civil war had been discovered inside a school in the country’s northeast.
Decades after the terrible struggle and a US bombing campaign that began in the 1960s, the country remains one of the world’s most frequently bombed and mined.
Over three days, deminers uncovered over 2,000 explosives, including over 1,000 M79 grenades, inside the grounds of a high school in Kratie province, according to Heng Ratana, director general of the Cambodian Mine Action Centre.
He told AFP the explosive remnants were found after the school cleared land to expand a garden.
“The school has been closed temporarily,” Heng Ratana said.
Images showed some of the masses of dug-up explosives, rusted over and stacked in rows.
“It is a huge stroke of luck for the students. These explosive devices are easy to explode if someone dug into the ground and hit them,” he said.
The site was a military station during the war, he added, and an operation to clear the grounds would probably uncover more.
Cambodia’s civil war continued until 1975, with the US and what was then North and South Vietnam supporting opposing factions.
The sad consequences of the US bombing campaign and minefields left behind have long been felt, with about 20,000 Cambodians dying over the last four decades after treading on landmines or bombs.
The government has promised to clear all mines and explosive ordnance by 2025, therefore clearance work continues to this day.