One Killed, Two Injured by US-Vietnam War Era Bombs

One Killed, Two Injured by US-Vietnam War Era Bombs

Quang Tri Province, Vietnam- One man was killed and two other men remain hospitalized after encountering US-Vietnam War era ordnance this week in central Vietnam

On August 10th, 32 year old Nguyn Ngoc was working outside his home with his brother Lai when when a decades old rocket exploded killing Ngoc on the spot. Lai received head injuries and is currently in the hospital. The victim's family home was demolished in the blast.

In a separate incident on the same day, Nguyen Van Canh, 40, was hoeing in his garden when he struck an unknown piece of ordnance and it exploded. He received major injuries to his intestines, lost two fingers and sustained major shrapnel wounds in his legs. At this writing he remains in intensive care.

Although the Vietnam War ended 30 years ago, by some estimates over 350,000 tons of bombs that did not detonate when dropped remain in the ground. This ordnance regularly claims lives and limbs in this still war-ravaged province. Since the conflict ended in 1975, nearly 40,000 Vietnamese have been killed by by these munitions.

Clear Path International serves landmine and bomb accident survivors, their families and their communities in former war zones in Southeast Asia. This assistance takes the form of both direct and indirect medical and social services to survivor families as well as equipment support to hospitals. Current Clear Path projects are in Vietnam, Cambodia and on the Thai-Burma border.

More information about Clear Path International can be found on the web at www.cpi.org.