The U.S. Army in Hawaii plans to use robots to remove unexploded munitions lying on the ocean floor off Waianae.
The Army plans to use a robot to remove unexploded ordnance from the sea off Oahu's Waianae Coast.
The U.S. DOD had disposed munitions in the sea according to globally accepted practices. Throwing old weapons into the sea was thought to be safer than burning or burying in the ground. The dumped weapons probably belonged to the Second World War era and the army continued the practice till 1970. The ranges of weapons include naval gun ammunition, small arms munitions and large caliber projectiles.
The weapons are in an area called the "Ordnance Reef" that is about two miles off the Waianae Wastewater Treatment Plant and the Pokai Bay and at a distance of about a mile from the shore. The munitions sit at depths ranging from 30' to 125'.
The U.S military has normally used divers for removing munitions in the sea. It is now testing out a remotely controlled robot for the job. Around 2,000 munitions are expected to be in the area, and it has aimed to remove and destroy around 75% of these weapons.
The operations will be performed over the next three weeks. A ship will carry a robot that will be used to lift the weapons out of the water, while an accompanying barge will be used for destroying the munitions.
The Army has asked the public to observe the safety zone and not to approach the vessels or the adjoining areas.