Odesa blast techs detonate river mine discovered on seaside

Ukrainian state emergency personnel identified then eliminated a Russian anchor river mine, uncovered along sandy beaches in the Odesa coastal region.

Mar 2, 2024 - 13:01

Odesa blast techs detonate river mine discovered on seaside

Ukrainian explosive specialists disposed of an anchor river mine discovered on a beach in Odesa after identifying the Soviet-era munition, as reported by the State Emergency Service (SES) of Odesa Oblast on Facebook on 1 March.

The anchor river mine or YaRM, adopted in 1954, has a 3 kg warhead. Such mines were spotted in the Dnipro River, mass laid by the Russians to prevent possible Ukrainian attacks to liberate the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant and other areas on the Russian-occupied bank of the Dnipro in Kherson and Zaporizhzhia oblasts. Many YaRM mines might have been swept into the sea after Russia destroyed the Kakhovka dam in the summer of 2023, leading to catastrophic flooding in the Kherson Oblast as water from the Kakhovka Reservoir rushed to the sea, flooding settlements on both banks.

The unexploded munition was discovered on one of the beaches in the Black Sea coastal city of Odesa on 29 February, according to regional emergency authorities. Pyrotechnic specialists from the State Emergency Service received the alert call and promptly arrived to assess the explosive device.

“Yesterday, an explosive object was found on one of the beaches in Odesa. SES pyrotechnics arrived at the scene and identified an anchor river mine. Today, the munition was destroyed in a controlled manner,” the SES statement reads.

Officials are urging the public to avoid handling or approaching any ordnance found on beaches or coastal areas. If suspicious munitions are discovered, they advise calling emergency services immediately for trained explosive disposal technicians to manage and neutralize the threat.

Over the two years of Russia’s full-scale invasion, there were several reports of storms bringing sea mines into the coastal waters and onto the beaches of the Odesa region, leading experts to conduct controlled detonations and some incidents.

Off the coast of #Odesa region, south #Ukraine, the second free floating sea mine was defused within a day.

This indicates ongoing issue of the free floating sea mines in the northwestern Black Sea:

https://t.co/ASUngISwdZ— Alex Kokcharov (@AlexKokcharov) August 21, 2022

A sea mine exploded near the coast of Odesa during a storm. An object was damaged but fortunately there are no casualties. pic.twitter.com/JwW4S9OwPv— NOELREPORTS
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