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Pader, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The Uganda People’s Defence Forces bomb squad have detonated eight unexploded bombs in Pader district.
They were detonated on Wednesday in Pader town council and Dure village in Acholi bur town council.
Dusman Okee, the Pader Resident District Commissioner says that most of the unexploded bombs were retrieved from gardens and homesteads between Monday and Wednesday.
Among the detonated bombs are rocket launchers, a hand grenade and anti-aircraft bombs.
He says the UPDF bomb squads embarked on detonation exercise last week in the sub-counties of Lapul and Pajule where unexploded ordinances were also found by local farmers.
Okee warned locals against retrieving and keeping unexpected bombs with hopes of selling them as scrap.
Justine Ocen, the Latanya sub-county LCV councillor says that the presence of unexploded ordinances within the community still poses a risk to the lives of many people and deterrent to farming.
He says in his sub-county alone, series of unexploded bombs still litter in gardens and homesteads with limited efforts to retrieve them for detonation by security personnel.
Ocen called on the UPDF bomb experts to intensify their detonation exercises in the district to rid the area of bombs that have become another nightmare in their recovery journey.
Brig Michael Kabango, the fifth Infantry Division Commander says that the army has trained some locals within communities on how to mark areas with bombs before informing security.
He says the army is committed to retrieving and detonating any unexploded ordinances but notes that such exercise also depends on the availability of resources.
Presence of thousands of unexploded bombs within the region more than 13 years after the LRA war remains a hindrance to complete recovery of the locals resulting in fatalities and severe injuries.
In December, a 22-year-old Vincent Okello died after sustaining severe body injuries from the bomb shrapnel that hit him from Latigi parish in Latanya sub county in Pader district.
In the neighbouring Kitgum, two children and their mother are still nursing injuries after a grenade exploded from their home in Kitgum Matidi sub county.
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