Construction workers found a mortar round at a water retention weir construction site in Amnat Charoen today, May 28, after it fell from a concrete mixer truck while ready-mix concrete was being poured.
Police in Mueang Amnat Charoen were alerted after workers found one suspicious object resembling a mortar round at the site in Kai Kham subdistrict, Mueang district. Officers then contacted the Amnat Charoen explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) team to inspect the object.
When the EOD team arrived, workers had moved the object away from the work area and covered it with a car tyre.
The EOD team handled the object with caution before confirming it was a mortar round. They later removed it from the site for destruction, reported Khaosod.
The mortar round reportedly fell from the mixer drum while the truck was pouring ready-mix concrete for the project. Workers suspect it came from sand dredged from the Mekong River and used in the concrete mix.
A 69 year old worker, Weera Phanwetch, said workers were levelling the concrete when the object dropped out near the end of the pour. At first, they thought it was a bottle and picked it up.
Weera said the workers realised it resembled an explosive, prompting them to move away from the area. He then placed the object away from the weir, covered it with a car tyre, and called the officers.
He added that several workers could have been injured or killed if the mortar round had exploded during the concrete pour.
Elsewhere, rangers found an unexploded MK-82 bomb in the forest of Ton Nga Chang Wildlife Sanctuary in Songkhla. Officers believe the bomb was left over from the Communist insurgency in Thailand over 40 years ago.
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