120-degree heat, high humidity, poisonous snakes. Russian combat engineers are doing hard work in such extreme conditions in Laos: they're clearing the land of mines.
In his report, our special correspondent Evgeniy Nippot answers the question: why are they the only ones who can do this?
Endless jungle and deep rivers: nature is the real treasure of Laos. To film this, we opened the helicopter door and recorded the sound with a special microphone because of the noise.
We are approaching the area where the small town of Lak Sao is situated. That's where our specialists are working right now. They're de-mining this territory. This area was connected to the Ho Chi Minh Trail, which was used to supply the forces of Northern Vietnam. A huge amount of American bombs was dropped there from 1964 to 1973.
This is the legacy of the Vietnam War. The Americans invaded this country, torn apart by the civil war, in the '60s. The neighboring states were also dragged into the conflict. Laos was severely bombed by the American Air Force for supporting America's enemies. This footage shows an American bomber flying over the Khamkeut District and bombing this very Lak Sao.
"A 2,000-pound bomb hit the target on January 22nd, the bridge in the Khamkeut District, Laos".
The Russian combat engineers found such an unexploded shell right in the city. The locals live in constant fear. Our engineers work in the yards, rice fields, and jungle. Before the Russian specialists start working, the Laos pioneers go to the jungle first. They clear the potential work area of trees. Anyway, our specialists have to work in extreme conditions: these jungles are swarming with dangerous insects and poisonous snakes. In addition, the heat of 120-degrees and the humidity are incredible. All this one has to suffer in a special protective suit: the next-generation OVR.
Ivan Ivanov, section leader of the engineer reconnaissance and de-mining group at the International Anti-Mine Center: “The locals are friendly but they look at us in these suits as if we were aliens. One can't lose focus at all. Any explosive object can lead to death.”
Mikhail Tarakanov, engineer reconnaissance: "There are 36 soldiers in the section. They have experience from Syria. The BLU-3B, an American cluster-bomb. As we can see, it's in good condition; the yellow paint has preserved. We also call it a "pineapple". These colors attract locals, especially children".
More than 200 people die from explosions in Laos annually; most of them are children. That is why the parents are especially grateful to Russian combat engineers.
"We don't worry for our children here after the territory was cleared of mines. They can walk here now. We are very grateful to the Russian military".
Not only the locals return to the areas cleared by the Russian engineers. The animals return after people. There was a time when Laos was called the land of a million elephants. No more than 20,000 of them have survived the American bombing. They continue to die, exploding on mines scattered around the country. But maybe, due to the work of the Russian specialists, the elephants will return to the Laos jungles.
Evgeniy Nippot, Evgeniy Kirilenko, Vesti, Laos, Khamkeut Province.
