ARCHIVED - Murcia bomb disposal team deactivates Civil War shell near Yecla

Hundreds of Civil War explosives are found every year although the conflict ended 81 years ago

The bomb disposal unit of the Guardia Civil in the Region of Murcia report that they have completed a mission to deactivate an artillery shell just outside the Region in the countryside of Almansa, in the province of Albacete (a few kilometres from the municipality of Yecla).

The man who chanced across the explosive device reported it immediately to the authorities, and when the Tedax unit from Murcia arrived at the scene they confirmed that it was in very deteriorated condition but that the explosive charge was still intact. The area around the 120-millimetre artillery shell dating from the Spanish Civil War (1936-39) was cordoned off while a controlled detonation was performed.

As ever in cases such as these, the Guardia reiterate their advice to anyone who should chance upon a potentially explosive device: DON’T TOUCH, DON’T MOVE THE OBJECT, MARK ITS POSITION AND CONTACT THE GUARDIA CIVIL on 062 or via the 112 emergency services line.

At the same time, it is worth pointing out that although the Civil War ended almost 81 years ago, even now it is not uncommon for unexploded bombs and missiles to be found all over Spain, many of them posing clear threats to the wellbeing of members of the public.

Every year the bomb disposal unit of the Guardia Civil is called out to deactivate over 1,000 devices, and over 300 explosive devices from the Civil War have been found in Madrid alone since 1985. Similar totals have accrued in many other locations all over Spain: in Cartagena, for example, the figure has reached 241 including 218 artillery shells, around 200 of which were removed from Cala Cortina in just three weeks in May 2018.

Many of these devices are still active: only if the casing opens is the explosive itself likely to degrade, and this was not the case, for example, when a 38-year-old was seriously injured by the explosion of a shell he kept in his home in Arévalo, in the province of Ávila, also in May 2018. The Guardia Civil found a hoard of such mementoes in the property, and there are numerous examples of similar “hobbies” leading to situations of extreme danger.

Some alarming anecdotes relate to these deactivations. Last year a resident of Loranca de Tajuña in Guadalajara reported finding a grenade, and when officer Eusebio Rodríguez went to assess it he was amazed when the caller told him that something inside must be broken, because it rattled when he shook it: the man didn’t realize how lucky he was to be alive to inform the expert!

In the light of these incidents, it is not surprising that every new discovery is followed by a reminder from the Guardia Civil of the importance of not touching or disturbing suspect devices, whether they are stumbled upon in the countryside or inside buildings: it is amazing how many are stored away in old garages and lock-ups and are not found until the owners undertake a clear-out. Call the authorities immediately - the 112 emergency services line or 062 for the Guardia Civil - making sure that you give the best possible indication of the exact location of the object, possibly by means of the GPS function on the mobile phone.

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