Safety Information for SoldiersSafety Information for Soldiers
The Dangers Associated with Munitions
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What Are MunitionsMunitions include:
• Artillery rounds
• Bombs• Grenades
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Munitions Components Fuze – contains the most sensitive
explosives• Arms a munition allowing it to
function as intended• Can, of itself, cause death or
serious injury
Booster – contains a slightly less sensitive explosive, can be hazardous
Main Charge – explosive, chemical, other• Explosive produces a blast wave and
fragments• Chemical may include toxic chemical
agents
Body – encases all the components of the munition, usually made of metal 3
What Are UXO
UXO stands for unexploded ordnance.
Unexploded ordnance (UXO) are military munitions that failed to function properly upon use.
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Munitions
• May be hard to identify• Come in many shapes, sizes and types,
even small munitions can injure or kill• Include “simulators” and
“practice” munitions, which are also dangerous
• Can be dangerous regardless of age
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Which Are Most Likely UXO?
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54 6
32
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New
Projectile
7Used
New
Rocket
8Used
Munitions can be encountered almost anywhere such as:
• Active military installations• Weapons and/or munitions test sites• Formerly Used Defense Sites (FUDS)• A home, as part of a souvenir collection• Tactical areas
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Encountering Munitions
WWI training site that is now in a residential
development in Washington, DC.
UXO from live-fire using the same kind of weapon shown above.
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Encountering Munitions
The DANGER is real!
Souvenirs recently collected or purchased and brought home or even Civil War cannon balls and artillery projectiles can be:
• Kept for years without incident, until they detonate
• Believed, incorrectly, tobe harmless, until they are proven otherwise
• Deadly
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The 3Rs of Explosives Safety
When you encounter a munition outside DoD’s military munitions management system:
• Recognize – that munitions are dangerous• Retreat – do not approach, touch, disturb or
move it, but leave the area• Report – call 911 or tell your chain of command what you saw, and
where you saw it
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Recognize• Munitions may:
− Not look like a projectile, rocket or bomb
− Look harmless, but they are dangerous
− Be shiny or rusty
− Be clean or dirty
• Even though a munition may not have been moved for yearsor has been moved dozens oftimes, it may still explode.
Leave it alone! 13
Retreat
• Do not go near, touch, move or disturb a munition or suspect munition.
• Carefully, leave the area, the same way you entered it.
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Report
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• Report what you saw and where you saw it to:– Military police or local
law enforcement
– Your chain of command
• Trained explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) personnel will dispose of the item.
Be Safe
• Remember, munitions can kill!
– Leave them alone
– Get away from them
– Report them to law enforcement or your chain of commend immediately
• Keep yourself and others safe.
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Remember, if you encounter or suspect you have encountered a
munition:
www.denix.osd.mil/uxo
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