Two Disposal Ops in One Day for Japanese EOD

Okinawa, Japan Over 800 people were evacuated from a city in central Okinawa while the Japanese army removed an American-made WWII-era bomb. The 550-pound munition was initially found by workers at a construction site according to a spokesperson for the city's Disaster Prevention and Crisis Management Division.

The area was evacuated as members of the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force's 101st EOD Unit moved the bomb into a hole using a crane and safely defused it.

On the same day, the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force detonated an additional 530 pounds of US-made, WWII-era bombs underwater off Geruma island. The three-hour operation forced four nearby beaches to close temporarily.

The ordnance included one 81 mm mortar shell, one 8-inch shell, one 6-inch shell, one 5-inch shell, one 4-inch shell and two 3-inch shells, according to a village General Affairs Division spokesperson.