Unexploded ordnance

Unexploded ordnance (UXO, sometimes abbreviated as UO) and unexploded bombs (UXBs) are <a href="/facts/Explosive_weapon/vVzk0Q2t">explosive weapons</a> (<a href="/facts/Bomb/GoH38wo1">bombs</a>, <a href="/facts/Shell_(projectile)/a51oDRdu">shells</a>, <a href="/facts/Grenade/Du3rHfGB">grenades</a>, <a href="/facts/Land_mine/D5AkxUF9">land mines</a>, <a href="/facts/Naval_mine/jo9uVY9U">naval mines</a>, <a href="/facts/Cluster_munition/QpvG4eeR">cluster munition</a>, and other <a href="/facts/Ammunition/ajd1wm1I">munitions</a>) that did not <a href="/facts/Explosion/Utp8Wv9D">explode</a> when they were deployed and remain at risk for <a href="/facts/Detonation/C8cVTb2R">detonation</a>, sometimes many decades after they were used or discarded. When unwanted <a href="/facts/Munitions/ajd1wm1I">munitions</a> are found, they are sometimes destroyed in <a href="/facts/Controlled_explosion/gFw3jyRm">controlled explosions</a>, but accidental detonation of even very old explosives might also occur, sometimes with fatal consequences.
For example, UXO from <a href="/facts/World_War_I/vITTUanQ">World War I</a> continues to be a hazard, with poisonous gas filled munitions still a problem. UXO does not always originate from conflict; areas such as military <a href="/facts/Training_base/19cluazx">training bases</a> can also hold significant numbers, even after the area has been abandoned.
Seventy-eight countries are contaminated by land mines, which kill or maim 15,000–20,000 people every year. Approximately 80% of casualties are civilian, with children being the most affected age group. An average estimate of 50% of deaths occur within hours of the blast. In recent years, mines have been used increasingly as weapons of terror; especially against local populations, such as in the <a href="/facts/War_crimes_in_the_Syrian_civil_war/7JlmJxTf">Syrian civil war</a>.
In addition to the obvious danger of explosion, buried UXO can cause environmental contamination. In some heavily used military training areas, munitions-related chemicals such as explosives and <a href="/facts/Perchlorate/WCC53zS2">perchlorate</a> (a component of <a href="/facts/Pyrotechnics/Gocs5Gcu">pyrotechnics</a> and rocket fuel) may enter soil and groundwater, thereby contaminating the <a href="/facts/Water_supply/1UuexMtl">water supply</a>, likewise with preventing agrarian uses such as <a href="/facts/Agriculture/TGztqzJs">farming</a> and <a href="/facts/Food_security/cKrQd4E9">food distribution</a>.

Unexploded ordnance open-in-new

Unexploded ordnance