Singaporean authorities ordered evacuating residents in Upper Bukit Timah after discovering a World War II bomb estimated to contain roughly 47 kilograms of explosives.
Officials said the WWII bomb was likely dropped in February 1942 during the Battle of Bukit Timah, the final stage of the country's fall to the Japanese forces. On Monday, history buffs said that the bomb was discovered last Wednesday at a condominium construction site off Upper Bukit Timah Road.
WWII Bomb Found in Singapore
The relic, which weighed 100 kilograms, had enough explosives to destroy a block of flats and was said to have been a high-explosive bomb deployed by an aircraft supporting the Imperial Japanese Army on the ground.
A senior analyst at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, Dr. Euan Graham, said that bombs of similar weight, when dropped from a height by an aircraft that is diving at a speed of 320 kilometers per hour, are capable of easily penetrating several meters underground, as per the Straits Times.
War historian John Kwok said that a high-explosive bomb can either explode on impact or be equipped with a timed fuse that detonates the explosive after some time. The latter can cause more damage to buildings as it would penetrate roofs before killing everyone sheltered inside a building.
However, because of various factors, the fuse of a bomb can sometimes fail to detonate the explosive properly. Kwok noted that, for some reason, such remains from the war were missed when officials conducted the post-war clean-up. He noted that some relics are discovered again when the area is disturbed during construction projects.
The Asia correspondent for United States-based defense magazine Defense News, Mr. Mike Yeo, warned that there is a chance for the massive 100-kilogram bomb to become more dangerous over time because of degradation. He cited a blaze that occurred in 1967 that involved exploding old bombs on a U.S. aircraft carrier, causing the death of 134 people.
Disposing of the War Relic
The recent discovery prompted officials to order the evacuation of the more than 4,000 people living and working near the site of the bomb discovery. According to Channel News Asia, officials also plan to create a 200-meter cordon around the site and close roads.
An explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) specialist with Blastwork Solutions, Mr. Winson Chew, said that the newly discovered bomb is most likely a "type 94." He noted that it was important to identify the device so that EOD professionals know what type of fuse it has and the required safety approach.
The police noted that the EOD team of the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) assessed that the bomb was too unsafe to move and must be disposed of on-site. Law enforcement personnel added that the SAF EOD team will carry out an on-site controlled disposal of the war relic on Sept. 26 between 8:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m., said Today Online.
