There are several organizations dealing with the removal of unexploded ordnance and helping the disabled who have lost limbs due to this. They have displays and offer free documentaries at certain times of the day. During the period of the Vietnam War, over half a million American bombing missions dropped more than 2 million tons of ordnance on Laos, most of it anti-personnel cluster bombs. Each cluster bomb shell contained hundreds of individual bomblets, "bombies", about the size of a tennis ball. An estimated 30% of these munitions did not detonate. Ten of the 18 Laotian provinces have been described as "severely contaminated" with artillery and mortar shells, mines, rockets, grenades, and other devices from various countries of origin. These munitions pose a continuing obstacle to agriculture and a special threat to children, who are attracted by the toy-like devices. Some 288 million cluster munitions and about 75 million unexploded bombs were left across Laos after the war ended. From 1996-2009, more than 1 million items of UXO were destroyed, freeing up 23,000 hectares of land. Between 1999 and 2008, there were 2,184 casualties (including 834 deaths) from UXO incidents. America undertook a "Secret War" in Laos during the conflict with Vietnam. This war resulted in Laos becoming the most bombed country in the world, and Xieng Khuang the most bombed region in the country. Some of the bombing was against the Pathet Lao in the north, and parts of the Ho Chi Minh trail in the south. However, a many bombs were dropped due to laziness: when US bombers called off attacks on northern Vietnam the air-crew dumped their loads on Laos so that they didn’t have to go through special procedures required when landing fully loaded.
©Kieron Nelson "Vanishing Cultures Photography" All rights reserved
