In Ukraine, 246 civilians died due to mines and explosive objects, 13 of them were children
In Ukraine, 246 civilians died due to detonations of mines or other explosive objects. Another 521 people were injured. This was announced by Oleg Shuvarskyi, Deputy Head of the Main Department of Mine Action, Civil Protection and Environmental Security of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, with reference to data from the secretariat of the National Mine Action Authority.
Anti-mine units of the Defense Forces of Ukraine use approximately 20 special vehicles to clear the de-occupied territories of explosive objects. In particular, Croatian DOK-ING MV-4, MV-10, Slovak Bozena-4, Bozena-5, Swiss GCS-200 and DIGGER machines, as well as the British Armtrak purchased within the framework of the United 24 project, are used for humanitarian demining operations.
“The maximum productivity of a deminer per day can reach 100 m², and mechanized demining machines can cover 3,000 to 5,000 km² in such a period of time,” Shuvarskyi said.
He emphasized that demining is a complex process, and its success depends on the terrain, soils, and vegetation on the territory. Depending on these characteristics, sappers decide which of the machines to put into operation.
“The machines work remotely, which makes the sapper’s work as safe as possible,” added Shuvarskyi.
On May 8, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi said that more than 170,000 km² of the country’s territory is contaminated with unexploded mines and ammunition.
Kharkiv and Kherson regions are the most polluted by mines, as the enemy was there the longest, the State Emergency Service noted.
Demining Ukraine requires five years and $300 million annually, said Paul Heslop, head of mine action activities of the UN Development Program in Ukraine, on June 21.
From February 2022 to September 2023, 138,700 hectares of territory have already been demined in Ukraine, Minister of Internal Affairs Ihor Klymenko reported on Telegram on September 12. “138.7 thousand hectares is almost ten times more than the area of Lviv. During the full-scale invasion, our specialists neutralized 528.9 thousand explosive objects,” he emphasized.