A fatal detonation of an unexploded World War II munition in Indonesia’s Biak Island is being linked to illicit fishing activity, according to police and investigators. The blast occurred in the coastal village of Fandoi, where investigators say the device had remained for decades since the Pacific conflict. Authorities concluded that local fishers were dismantling the old explosive when it detonated, causing deaths and injuries. Reporting from multiple outlets says the explosion killed seven people and injured 19 others. Officials say the men were reportedly harvesting materials from the shell for use in blast fishing, a method that uses explosives to catch fish. The investigations also describe the munition being found near homes, and the incident prompting a police response and renewed attention to the presence of unexploded ordnance in former battle areas. Authorities are treating the incident as an unlawful attempt to recover and use the device’s contents, rather than an accidental discovery alone.
Police say WWII bomb explosion on Indonesia’s Biak linked to illegal fishing
A fatal detonation of an unexploded World War II munition in Indonesia’s Biak Island is being linked to illicit fishing activity, according to police and investigators. The blast occurred in the coast...
- An unexploded World War II munition detonates in Fandoi village on Biak Island, Indonesia.
- Police and investigators conclude local fishers were dismantling the device at the time of the blast.
- Officials say the activity was linked to illegal fishing using blast-fishing methods.
- The blast kills seven people and injures 19 others.
- The incident occurs near timber-framed homes in the coastal village.
In May, a group of fishers on the Indonesian island of Biak were dismantling an unexploded shell left over from World War II when the device went off, reportedly killing seven people and injuring 19 others. Officials have concluded that the fishers were harvesting materials from the shell for use in blast fishing. Read more on E360 →
3 hours agoBIAK, Indonesia — The munition here had outlasted one of the Pacific’s fiercest World War II battles. Eight decades later, investigators in Indonesia said it exploded by the timber-framed houses in the coastal village of Fandoi on Indonesia’s Biak Island. Investigators and officials later concluded a group of local fishers were dismantling an unexploded munition […]
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