蜜芽传媒

A former navy bomb disposal expert has warned that pipe mines, buried during WWII in airfields to prevent enemy invasion, could still be under buildings in Britain.

Many of the old airfields in East and South East England have been sold with the mines remaining underground. However in the 1980s, the Ministry of Defence attempted to remove them with Operation Crabstick.

As a result, 227 pipe mines were cleared up by 1989, 65 were identified but not removed. It is unknown how many remain.

David Welch, whose company Ramora has been involved in the demolition of two pipe mines, said people 鈥渟hould be concerned鈥�, but as the pipe mines were buried about 10 feet below ground, he thinks that they are unlikely to go off.

鈥淚f you don鈥檛 disturb them, they don鈥檛 detonate. People generally wouldn鈥檛 dig down more than a few inches鈥� so you would expect them not to encounter it.鈥�

A spokesperson for the Ministry of Defence said鈥︹�淚f the MOD does not own the land in question, it is unable to comment however, as always, Royal Naval, Army and Royal Air Force explosives ordnance disposal teams remain prepared to support the police in the safe rendering of any suspected explosive material should anyone find it鈥�

This clip is from 5 Live Investigates on 14.02.2016.

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