Explosion at a US air base in southern Japan injures 4 Japanese soldiers
How did your country report this? Share your view in the comments.
Diverging Reports Breakdown
Explosion at a US air base in southern Japan injures 4 Japanese soldiers
The four soldiers sustained finger injuries while working at a facility. One of the harshest battles of World War II was fought on Okinawa. No U.S. servicemembers were involved in the incident, the Air Force said. The Self Defense Force’s joint staff said one of the devices suddenly exploded when the soldiers were inspecting it at the storage facility.
The four soldiers sustained finger injuries while working at a facility that belongs to Okinawa prefecture and temporarily stores unexploded ordnance, mostly from wartime and found on the island, local officials said. One of the harshest battles of World War II was fought on Okinawa.
Prefectural officials said the injuries were not life-threatening, but no other details were immediately known.
The U.S. Air Force said in a statement that the explosion occurred at the facility managed by the Okinawa prefectural government at Kadena Air Base’s munitions storage area. It said no U.S. servicemembers were involved in the incident.
The Self Defense Force’s joint staff said one of the devices suddenly exploded when the soldiers were inspecting it at the facility. The blast occurred when the soldiers were trying to remove rust, NHK television reported.
The SDF said they are trying to confirm what caused the accident.
Monday’s accident was believed to be the first ever since the 1974 launch of the Japanese army’s unexploded ordnance disposal unit.
Hundreds of tons of unexploded wartime bombs, many of them dropped by the U.S. military, remain buried around Japan and are sometimes dug up at construction sites and elsewhere. Many of them are still found on Okinawa, where about 1,856 tons of unexploded U.S. bombs are believed to remain.
In October, an unexploded wartime U.S. bomb exploded at a commercial airport in southern Japan, causing a large crater and suspending dozens of flights.
Explosion at a US air base in southern Japan injures 4 Japanese soldiers
Richard Lee Bean, 60 July 2, 1964 ~ May 28. Betty Lou Lee, 79, of Ringgold passed away Sunday, April 28, 2024. Clenton Ray Hammock age 84 of Livingston, Overton Co. passed from this life on Wednesday morning, April 17.
Obituaries – 5/7/24 Betty Lou Lee Betty Lou Lee, 79, of Ringgold passed away Sunday, April 28, 2024. A native of Allons, Mrs. Lee has been a resident of Chattanooga for most of her life. She was a member …
Obituaries – 4/23/24 Clenton Ray Hammock Mr. Clenton Ray Hammock age 84 of Livingston, Overton Co. passed from this life on Wednesday morning, April 17, at his residence. Mr. Clenton Ray Hammock was born in …
Obituaries – 4/9/24 Billy J. Winningham Billy J. Winningham age 76 of Alpine, was born Thursday, September 9, 1948, to Edgar and Minnie (Butram) Winningham. Billy Passed away Thursday, March 27, 2024, at the …
Explosion at a US air base in southern Japan injures 4 Japanese soldiers
Japanese officials say an explosion at a storage site for unexploded ordnances at a U.S. military base on Japan’s southern island of Okinawa injured four Japanese soldiers. The four soldiers sustained finger injuries while working at a facility that belongs to Okinawa prefecture. One of the harshest battles of World War II was fought on Okinawa. Hundreds of tons of unexploded wartime bombs remain buried around Japan and are sometimes dug up at construction sites and elsewhere. Many of them are still found on Okinawa, where about 1,856 tons are believed to remain.
This photo shows a gate at Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, southern Japan, on July 12, 2024. (Juntaro Yokoyama/Kyodo News via AP)
This photo shows a gate at Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, southern Japan, on July 12, 2024. (Juntaro Yokoyama/Kyodo News via AP)
This photo shows a gate at Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, southern Japan, on July 12, 2024. (Juntaro Yokoyama/Kyodo News via AP)
This photo shows a gate at Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, southern Japan, on July 12, 2024. (Juntaro Yokoyama/Kyodo News via AP)
TOKYO — An explosion at a storage site for unexploded ordnances at a U.S. military base on Japan’s southern island of Okinawa injured four Japanese soldiers, though the injuries are not life threatening, officials said Monday.
The four soldiers sustained finger injuries while working at a facility that belongs to Okinawa prefecture and temporarily stores unexploded ordnance, mostly from wartime and found on the island, local officials said. One of the harshest battles of World War II was fought on Okinawa.
Prefectural officials said the injuries were not life threatening, but no other details were immediately known.
The U.S. Air Force said in a statement that the explosion occurred inside the facility managed by the Okinawa prefectural government at Kadena Air Base’s munitions storage area. It said no U.S. servicemembers were involved in the incident.
The Self Defense Force’s joint staff said one of the ordnances suddenly exploded when the soldiers were inspecting it at the facility. The blast occurred when the soldiers were trying to remove rust to examine details of the unexploded ordnance, NHK television reported.
The SDF said they are trying to confirm what caused the accident.
Hundreds of tons of unexploded wartime bombs, many of them dropped by the U.S. military, remain buried around Japan and are sometimes dug up at construction sites and elsewhere. Many of them are still found on Okinawa, where about 1,856 tons of unexploded U.S. bombs are believed to remain.
In October, an unexploded wartime U.S. bomb exploded at a commercial airport in southern Japan, causing a large crater and suspending dozens of flights.
Explosion at US air base in Japan’s Okinawa injures four soldiers
Japan Self-Defense Forces (SDF) members were trying to wipe rust off items at the facility to re-assess if they were bombs. Four male SDF members who were rushed to hospital. None of the injuries was life-threatening, local media said.
Japan Self-Defense Forces (SDF) members at the facility at Kadena Air Base were trying to wipe rust off items at the facility to re-assess if they were bombs, said local fire department official Akira Kamiunten.
During that process there was an explosion that injured four male SDF members who were rushed to hospital, he told AFP.
Jiji Press and other local media said none of the injuries was life-threatening.
A defence ministry spokesman also confirmed reports of an explosion at Kadena Air Base, located on the main island of the southern region of Okinawa.
During World War II, Japan used Okinawa as a buffer to slow US forces.
More than a quarter of the main island’s civilian population died in the 1945 Battle of Okinawa.
US occupation only ended there in 1972, under a mutual treaty that left American bases in place.
Today, Okinawa contains 70 per cent of the land used for US bases in Japan, and more than half of the 50,000-strong US troop presence. — AFP
4 Japan SDF members hurt in blast near U.S. Kadena Air Base in Okinawa
An explosion occurred Monday near the U.S. military’s Kadena Air Base in the southern Japanese prefecture of Okinawa. Four Japan Ground Self-Defense Force members were working at a depot, local and Defense Ministry officials said.
An explosion occurred Monday near the U.S. military’s Kadena Air Base in the southern Japanese prefecture of Okinawa, slightly injuring four Japan Ground Self-Defense Force members who were working at a depot, local and Defense Ministry officials said.
The ministry officials said there was an unidentified explosion while SDF personnel were preparing for bomb disposal operations, causing those in close proximity to suffer finger lacerations and possible hearing damage.
The explosion appears to have occurred at an SDF storage facility for unexploded bombs in the ammunition depot area of the base, a Defense Ministry source said.
According to local authorities, no evacuation order has been issued for nearby residents, and there is no risk of further explosions or fire.
Okinawa remains home to the bulk of U.S. military facilities in Japan even after its 1972 reversion from U.S. control following Japan’s defeat in World War II.