The Big Bang

Photo By Spc. Christopher Grammer | Two fireballs erupt as thousands of pounds of ammunition are detonated during a controlled detonation near Camp Buehring, Kuwait, May 30. The detonation included service members from three different nations.  

KUWAIT

05.30.2008

Story by Spc. Christopher Grammer 

50th Public Affairs Detachment

By Christopher Grammer
50th Public Affairs Detachment

KUWAIT - The 362nd disposes of unserviceable munitions, improvised explosive devices and any other ordnance in the U.S. Army Central area of operations.

"It is our pleasure to work with the U.S., they saved our country," said Kuwaiti Army Lt. Meshari Nabeel, an explosive ordnance technician with the Naval Special Unit EOD team.

The Kuwait EOD trains its personnel in the U.S. for nine months before they are qualified. This helps make operations alongside U.S. forces much easier.

Also present were Australian Army Soldiers who brought the medics for the operation as well as EOD.

The 362nd EOD works alongside the Navy, Air Force and the Kuwaiti military often, while disposing of IEDs and UXO. This helps keep the roads clear of hazards and enables safe travel for convoys heading to or from Iraq.

Unserviceable munitions, referred to as Code-H munitions, are any ordnance that are out of date, damaged, or can no longer be guaranteed to function as designed, said Sgt. Encarnacion Garcia, a Phoenix native with the 362nd EOD.

The ordnance can either be shipped back to the U.S. or taken to ranges such as those outside Camp Buehring for disposal. Shipping ordnance back to the U.S. costs large amounts of money to dispose of a very small amount of ordnance. Ordnance disposal in theater costs very little and gets rid of large amounts of unexploded ordnance.

"These types of missions are important because we are taking this stuff off the hands of Soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan," said Garcia. "It has to go somehow and this way there's one less thing they have to worry about."

Disposal of ordnance also provides the opportunity for EOD training, demolition operations training, and training in safety operations.

When handling explosives, safety is the main consideration of the 362nd EOD. The net weight of the ordnance is calculated as well as the blast and fragmentation radius, Garcia said. Fragments quickly lose their velocity, however the blast travels a much greater distance. The 362nd EOD personnel stood about a mile away from the explosion, well outside the blast and fragmentation radius when the munitions were detonated.

The proper disposal of such lethal items is necessary to keep Soldiers safe, allowing them to return home unharmed.

• Date Taken: 05.30.2008
• Date Posted: 06.10.2008 03:48
• Story ID: 20290
• Location: KW