Construction worker hurt in explosion of possible dud shell in Okinawa

Wednesday 14th January, 01:44 PM JST

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Okisurfer at 02:54 PM JST - 14th January

Wow... and nobody died? That is unreal. Glad to hear everyone is OK. Good karma for all involved.
dennis0bauer at 03:11 PM JST - 14th January

That is one lucky worker, but why is the name of worker published but not the police officer?
Disillusioned at 03:15 PM JST - 14th January

Scary stuff! Beachcombing and bushwalking would be quite dangerous pass-times in Okinawa.
nandakandamanda at 04:18 PM JST - 14th January

You would think that they would have blast-proof windows on Okinawan power shovels.
soldave at 04:25 PM JST - 14th January

Damn Marines...
mindovermatter at 06:21 PM JST - 14th January

Unexploded U.S. Military shell causes great injuries, extensive unjustified damages, Okinawan's outraged by this latest incident of the Great Satan! Police to investigate possible professional negligence of U.S. Base

Just trying to think of the headline if it was somehow an unexploded shell from the U.S. dating back from WW2...

I think I'm pretty close....
kwatt at 06:29 PM JST - 14th January

Even in Tokyo area there are still undetonated bombs all over dropped by US Air Force called "Tokyo Air Raid". Hey guys, watch out!
martyman at 09:02 PM JST - 14th January

Yes Soldave, modern day Marines are at fault for UXO's that are over 60 years old. Never mind the efforts of todays US Military Explosive Ordinance disposal teams working together with the Japanese to dispose of the UXO's all over the island. I am pretty sure the Japanese military during the war didnt have any explosives to defend them selves from the Marines... By the way, if anyone visits Okinawa, watch where you step, it maybe an earth shattering experience.
Ultradude at 09:38 PM JST - 14th January

Any proof it was US ordinance? Seems logical that the defending army would tend to lay the majority of land mines.
smithinjapan at 10:54 PM JST - 14th January

Ultradude: Good point, and surprisingly strange that no one else has thought of it. Mind you, an attacking force could also lay mines if pulling back from a certain front and not wishing the enemy to advance. What's more, it's only BELIEVED to be a mine, and I have a hard time believing a land mine would have such a concussive blast as far as 30 meters away. Seems more likely to have been dropped ordinance, but then it exploded awfully easy... hmmm...

At any rate, glad everyone is okay.
Kouseikun at 10:57 PM JST - 14th January

To mindovermatter, martyman, and Ultradude: Where in the article do you see 'US ordinance' or anything related to it? I certainly do not. All I see is "an undetonated land mine from World War II." which does not suggest any specific country. The fact that it's in a place where both US and Japanese soldiers fought means nil in this matter. No one can prove nor disprove who placed it. Kwatt: That is an issue in another place, and is unrelated entirely. Please leave that out. No one is at fault for this unless/until a CSI team investigates the explosion, finds all the obliterated pieces of the mine, and puts peices together that might show a serial number or other such name. Please re-read the article and get all the known facts straight before commenting. On an unrelated topic, to dennis0bauer: The police officer is a public official. His name must be kept for security reasons. I'm not sure which law(s) dictate this so.
smithinjapan at 01:55 AM JST - 15th January

Kouseikun: Relax, amigo. Ultradude's comments, I believe, were in response to a lot of posters who came on here and were very quick to bash and judge the US, as though it were automatically their ordinance. HE didn't say it was US ordinance, he asked other posters for proof as to why they are so sure it was.
telecasterplayer at 03:15 AM JST - 15th January

Construction worker hurt in explosion of possible dud shell in Okinawa

If it exploded 60+ years after being dropped, it's not as much a "dud" as much as it is an "underachiever".
kwatt at 10:02 AM JST - 15th January

I think that Okinawa, Japanese people will never blame the US about undetonated land mines or bombs in Japan on today's sudden explosion. These properties belong to Japan with responsibility, not to the US any more. These are kind of fossils that have been covered in soil for many years. It is impossible to detect all undetonated ones that may be somewhere in Japan.
nigelboy at 10:49 AM JST - 15th January

Any proof it was US ordinance? Seems logical that the defending army would tend to lay the majority of land mines.

Well. This article jumped the gun a little bit by stating "may have been a World War II-era land mine" when all other sources indicate it's a UXO (不発弾）which includes bombs, shells, or grenedes.

The preliminary reports indicate it's a U.S. origin (250 kg 35cm diameter, 120 cm length) which is often found in Okinawa.

http://ryukyushimpo.jp/news/storyid-139873-storytopic-152.html

From 1974~1996, there has been 44 cases of the above type UXO found in Okinawa.