Eglin Air Force Base, FL Dressed in the bright whites, deep blues and dense blacks of their service uniforms, Airmen, Marines, Sailors and Soldiers returned this year to honor and remember their fallen explosive ordnance disposal brethren May 3.

The annual memorial ceremony, in its 56th year, took place at Eglin's Kauffman EOD Training Complex amid sporadic heavy rain showers and surrounded by dark storm clouds.

The schoolhouse's commandant, Navy Capt. Doug Alley, welcomed guests who braved the weather and explained why they return to the memorial on the first Saturday of May each year. This specific Saturday is designated National EOD Day.

"We gather here with solemn hearts and profound gratitude to honor those who've given the last full measure of devotion in service to our nation," Alley said.

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Virginia Beach, Virginia A dedication ceremony for the new Navy Special Operations Memorial was held by Explosive Ordnance Disposal Group 2 (EODGRU 2) at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Fort Story. The memorial features a granite arch with plaques honoring 55 fallen Navy EOD Technicians and 28 Navy Divers who made the ultimate sacrifice since 1942.

The event included a flyover by Strike Fighter Squadron 106, speeches from Navy leaders, the reading of the names, a wreath-laying, and a 21-gun salute. Chief EOD Technician (Ret.) Patrick Flanigan, who played a key role in its development, highlighted the memorial's design, which features a healing garden and inscribed brick walkway. The memorial serves as a tribute not only to fallen warriors but also promotes healing for current service members.

HILL AIR FORCE BASE  Hill's 775th Explosive Ordnance Disposal flight hosted a 10-day international knowledge exchange here with EOD military members from Poland and the United Kingdom last month. The exchange directly supports strategic and operational objectives of strengthening partnerships in the critical European theater.

Members from the three North Atlantic Treaty Organization partner nations shared best practices learned while encountering EOD challenges in the EUCOM theater including dealing with drones, trench warfare and airfield recovery.

Master Sgt. Matthew Childers, 775th EOD flight chief said the first international exchange event happened at Nellis AFB in December. Hill EOD members were invited to attend and accepted the invitation to host the next knowledge exchange in April.

"Hill was a good fit because we support the Utah Test and Training Range with range clearances," Childers said. "Being a large range base flight, we have the manning and equipment to set up and be successful with something of this magnitude."

Training interoperability during peacetime is very beneficial because EOD is a joint community that performs as one team of partner nations when deployed.

Vernon Parish, Louisiana The Army issued an announcement that EOD officer, 1LT Zachary Galli, 23, was killed during unspecified training at the Joint Readiness Training Center at Fort Johnson. Galli, originally from Williamsburg, Virginia was assigned to the 749th Ordnance Company, 242nd EOD, 71st EOD Group located at Fort Carson in Colorado.

The cause of "training accident" is under investigation. The installation's Public Affairs Office has not released any details surrounding the death.

Cold Bay, Alaska Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson EOD traveled to Cold Bay, near the western end of the Alaska Peninsula, after a local hunter reported what appeared to be a large, unexploded artillery shell. The ordnance was discovered in the federally protected Izembek National Wildlife Refuge, a key habitat for many migratory birds and other wildlife.

According to U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Tyrone Powell, the EOD team leader confirmed that the find was an unexploded military round. Powell said, "It's big artillery. When we pulled it out of the ground, it weighed probably six or seven hundred pounds. It took four of us to pull it out."

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Annapolis, MD The US Navy announced an incentive program for EOD LTs and LCDRs. Under the new EOD bonus system, eligible LTs who sign a four-year contract are eligible for a $72,000 bonus (or $12,500 annually for two more years of service). LCDRs are eligible for up to $100,000 if they agree to four more years of service (or $30,000 for a two-year contract). Navy EOD Officers who are within one year of eligibility may apply for the program through their respective COs.

Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska The U.S. Air Force Explosive Ordnance Disposal team here received a call on Sep. 28, from archaeologists who had unearthed a crate of TNT and executed a controlled detonation near Tok, Alaska.

Air Force EOD members provide an emergency response capability for the Air Force and Joint Commanders to detect, locate, access, diagnose, render safe, recover, and dispose of explosive ordnance. These missions include disposing of ordnance for the Air Force and nearby communities.

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Clearfield, Utah EOD from Hill Air Force Base (AFB)took possession of a 500-pound bomb discovered by a construction crew near Interstate 15 in Provo.

"We were working with the Utah County bomb squad," said Captain Bryce Muzzy. "They were on scene already and we decided it was a hazard we need to go check out immediately. We verified that it was non-hazardous."

According to Capt. Muzzy, the "drill bomb" was built before WWII and was likely used for air crews to load and unload jets. He also noted that the squad has responded to UXO finds in the area before, though perhaps not for such a large ordnance.

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Camp Hale, Colorado Eagle County Sheriff officials reported that Army EOD Army have safely destroyed a WW II-era landmine found by a hiker in the White River National Forest near Camp Hale. The hiker contacted sheriff deputies after discovering a gray metal device with yellow letters on it that appeared to be an old landmine. He took pictures of the device and noted its location in the woods, sheriff's officials said in a social media post.

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Kaiserslautern, Germany German EOD have safely defused a WWII bomb discovered during excavation for a new electric vehicle battery plant. The 550-pound munition was located less than 20 inches underground beneath a concrete slab on the site of the former Opel car factory.

The construction site is situated between the U.S. Army's Rhine Ordnance Barracks and Pulaski Barracks, which led to a temporary delay for some incoming flights to Ramstein Air Base.

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