The Nigerian Army has discovered 93 unexploded ordnances, otherwise known as bombs, at the Ikeja Military Cantonment in Lagos, as its recently launched operation codenamed ‘Exercise Clean Sweep’ got underway.
The discovery was announced by the Director at the Directorate of Explosives Search and Disposal, Nigeria Army Engineers/Coordinator of Exercise Clean Sweep, Colonel Abdulrazaq Kazeem, during a briefing on Thursday, October 12, 2023.
The Army had on Tuesday, October 10, 2023, flagged off the exercise, whose goal was to clear the area following the 2002 bomb explosion that rocked the cantonment.
According to the Army, the recovered bombs were of various calibres and descriptions.
Kazeem said, “We have so far recovered 93 ordnances of different calibres. So at 93, we are not yet up to the explosives, we measure it in kilograms, so once we get to that particular explosive limit, then we’ll move to the range.”
Though there have been previous clearance and disposal exercises at the site, the vicinity is still reported to hold remnants of unexploded ordnances much to the detriment of the safety and security of the inhabitants of the cantonment and its environs.
For his part, the Safety Officer, Lt Col Oluseyi Oladapo Bamikole, said necessary measures had been put in place “for the safety of personnel as they have made adequate equipment available including demarcations and trained personnel to identify UXO before recovery from the site.”
Bamikole also disclosed that adequate measures have been taken, including the provision of equipment, demarcations and trained personnel, to identify the remnant bombs before recovery,
He stressed that necessary precautions have been taken to ensure the safety of all those participating in the critical exercise.
