US bomb from World War II explodes at Japanese airport, causing large crater in taxiway

Representative pic

An unexploded United States (US) bomb from World War II that had been buried at a Japanese airport exploded on Wednesday, October 2, causing a large crater in a taxiway and the cancellation of more than 80 flights but no injuries, Japanese officials said.

Land and Transport Ministry officials stated there were no aircraft nearby when the bomb exploded at Miyazaki Airport in southwestern Japan.

Officials said an investigation by the Self-Defence Forces and police confirmed that the explosion was caused by a 500-pound US bomb and there was no further danger. They were determining what caused its sudden detonation, news agency AP reported.

A video recorded by a nearby aviation school showed the blast spewing pieces of asphalt into the air like a fountain. Videos broadcast on Japanese television showed a crater in the taxiway reportedly about 7 meters in diameter and three-feet deep.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said more than 80 flights had been cancelled at the airport, and hopes that services will be resumed on Thursday morning.

The Miyazaki Airport was built in 1943 as a former Imperial Japanese Navy flight training field from which some kamikaze pilots took off on suicide attack missions.

A number of unexploded bombs dropped by the US military during World War II have been unearthed in the area, Defence Ministry officials said.

Hundreds of tonnes of unexploded bombs from the war remain buried around Japan and are sometimes dug up at construction sites.

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