Regional Airport in Japan Shuts After WWII Bomb Explodes Near Runway
The Facts
A regional airport in southwestern Japan had to be closed early on Wednesday after the blast of a wartime dud shell damaged the runway, with operations only resuming the next morning.
Japanese authorities said that the ordnance — a US-made bomb likely dropped during World War II — exploded for no particular reason, leaving a crater in taxiway about seven-meters (23-feet) long and one-meter (3-feet) deep.
The Spin
Narrative A
It's an unfortunate reality that the huge-scale historic raids on Japan, and other nations involved in the Second World War, continue to affect populations today. Such issues are unsurprising in Britain and Germany, which frequently face the dangerous legacy of unexploded bombs. Sadly, there's no real way of counteracting the ongoing impacts of these historic campaigns, or even knowing where unexploded ordinances may be lurking in modern society.
Narrative B
Although there's no way of mapping unexploded ordinances, more should be done to address the ongoing effects they have on biodiversity and human populations. In 2023, Azerbaijan launched a landmark case against Armenia over environmental destruction, while Kyiv is seeking reparations for Russian 'ecocide' as a result of the continuing conflict in Ukraine. The US should prepare itself to take responsibility for the impact of bombing campaigns which, even today, disrupt and pose threats to other nations.
