Reuters AlertNet Full site
Homepage | Newsdesk | NGO Latest | Crisis briefings | Country profiles | MediaWatch | Jobs | Alerting | Login

FROM THE FIELD

Mineclearing accident in Angola
19 Aug 2009 14:13:00 GMT
 Source: DanChurchAid - Denmark
Anna Arnfjord Christiansen

Website: Website: http://www.danchurchaid.org/sider_paa_hjemmesiden/what_we_do/issues_we_work_on/humanitarian_mine_action/read_more/mineclearing_accident_in_angola

danchaid logo
A detonating cord attached to an anti tankmine
Previous | Next
A detonating cord attached to an anti tankmine

Background

•  Angola recovery

MORE >>
A member of DanChurchAid's mine clearing staff in Angola, Antonio Maliti was working in a minefield in the village Chicololo in the eastern part of Angola, when an unintended explosion caused Antonio to loose all fingers on his right hand.

There are strong indications that the explosion was not caused by a mine but by an unidentified explosive object. This object is suspected to be unstable detonating cord.

A detonating cord is used to connect mines in order to create a greater explosion and greater damage to those, who are unfortunate to release one of the mines.

The det cord in question was connecting an anti tankmine and another possible mine, but luckily - and according to DanChurchAid procedure - the det cord had been disconnected as soon as the anti tank mines were located.

Under normal circumstances the detonating cord would not have exploded without having been ignited. But there is a risk, that the explosives can become unstable if it has been in the ground for a long time. When it becomes unstable it can explode if handled.

DanChurchAid is now investigating the accident in corporation with the Angolan authorities in order to define the cause of the accident. Antonio has undergone surgery and is well under the circumstances.


[ Any views expressed in this article are those of the writer and not of Reuters. ]

Email this article       Send comments

Topics

•  Landmines and explosives

MORE >>

Emergencies

•  Angola recovery

MORE >>

Members

•  DanChurchAid - Denmark

MORE >>

NGO latest

•  Sleeping tight in Darfur
DanChurchAid - Denmark

•  Mineclearing accident in Angola
DanChurchAid - Denmark

•  Sleeping tight in Darfur
DanChurchAid - Denmark

•  DanChurchAid clears cluster bombs in Lebanon
DanChurchAid - Denmark

•  MAG Iraq - July report
MAG - UK

MORE >>

Latest news

•  INTERVIEW-Reorientation part of Niger delta amnesty

•  Clinton uses her own, Obama's celebrity in Africa

•  ANALYSIS-Clinton's Africa trip breaks little new ground

•  Sri Lanka's spies in war to crush rebel remnants

•  Video: Clinton signs oil deal in Angola

MORE >>

[ Any views expressed in this article are those of the writer and not of Reuters. ]

Background information

Briefings
Angola recovery - [Who works where]

Topics
Landmines and explosives
Facts & figures
Angola
Statistics graphs
Human development index ranking (2005)
Chart for Human development index ranking
View more stats

Related articles

Breaking stories
 INTERVIEW-Reorientation part of Niger delta amnesty (1 minute ago)

Clinton uses her own, Obama's celebrity in Africa (1 minute ago)

AlertNet insight
 Scheme to control blood diamonds ignoring abuses - campaigners (1 minute ago)

Aid agency news feed
 Sleeping tight in Darfur (1 minute ago)

Blogs
 MEDIAWATCH: The Geneva Conventions' 60th birthday (1 minute ago)

Maps
 ANGOLA Crisis Space Map Ondjiva Xangongo Area (1 minute ago)


Del.icio.us Del.icio.us  |   Digg Digg  |   NewsVine NewsVine  |   Reddit Reddit   
Thumb for /thefacts/imagerepository/RTRPICT/2009-07-28T155431Z_01_AFR06_RTRIDSP_2_ANGOLA-EVICTION_mainimage.jpg|/thenews/pictures/AFR06.htm
Thumb for /thefacts/imagerepository/RTRPICT/2009-06-24T114706Z_01_BER800_RTRIDSP_2_GERMANY_mainimage.jpg|/thenews/pictures/BER800.htm

A woman bathes her child in the open next to remains of her home in the Baghdad settlement in Angola's capital Luanda, July 28, 2009. Hundreds of people who were forcibly ...


More pictures | Galleries
Disclaimers |  Copyright |  Privacy |  Contact Us |  Feedback |  About Us |  RSS XML

Last updated:Thu Aug 20 12:48:04 2009