Hundreds of thousands of tonnes of explosives are lying both on land and at sea in Norway. In Finnmark, it is not uncommon to find old explosives that can still be very dangerous. – We have a massive problem in Norway and especially in East Finnmark, says war captain Wiggo Korsvik at the Armed Forces’ operational headquarters. And it does not help that the remains after the war start to get old: – Explosives do not get better with age, they become more unstable over time, says Korsvik. This week, a woman who was cleaning up the beach in Sør-Varanger found lots of ammunition and grenades. Three Soviet 50mm grenade launchers. Photo: The Armed Forces There were whole boxes with several thousand shots of ammunition for the Tokarev pistol, a Mosin-Nagant rifle and three Soviet 50mm bombers. – When finding such objects: do not touch it. What you do is take pictures and mark where it was found. Then you have to report to the police, says Korsvik. Following such a finding, it is common for the police to ask the Armed Forces’ operational headquarters for help so that they can put qualified people on the case. War Captain Wiggo Korsvik is the Staff Officer for EOD – Explosive Ordnance Disposal. Photo: Christoffer Møllevik / news – We have a massive problem Korsvik says that people like to think that the responsibility lies with the Armed Forces. But that’s not true. – We clean when the police ask us for help. When explosives are on civilian ground, the Armed Forces cannot simply enter without further ado. It is the state’s responsibility to take action in the clean-up, says Korsvik. Thus, it is Norway’s problem when the state does not have the money to look for explosives, he says. – The measure that applies now is that we do something about it when it is discovered and not before. And that’s a shame. The defense detonates German grenades. Source Defense. No one is responsible The challenge is that very much of the ammunition and explosives left after the war have no owner. State Secretary in the Ministry of Justice and Emergency Preparedness Thor Kleppen Sættem (H) has previously stated to news that it has not been decided which administrative body has formal responsibility for mapping and destroying the remnants of the war. However, the Norwegian Defense Research Establishment has received funding for a project that will provide broader knowledge about the extent of this problem. German rifle grenade. Photo: The Armed Forces Be careful with bonfires Because there are so many dangerous remains after the war in Finnmark, Korsvik warns against lighting bonfires in areas where there is loose soil. – The Germans set many of the ammunition depots on fire, and when they exploded, they sent out drafts of ammunition that had been left on the ground, Korsvik says. The heat from a fire goes so far into the ground that it can detonate explosives that may be well hidden under the ground. – If you absolutely must light a fire, check that there is nothing there, says Korsvik. Even if we do not see the explosion, we hear it well. Source: The Armed Forces Partisan activities The ammunition found this week was collected, sorted and packed in transport safe boxes to be destroyed. The grenades were detonated with the permission of the police. The ammunition may have belonged to partisans. Before the Red Army entered Eastern Finnmark in October 1944, the Soviets sent in Norwegian freedom fighters, known as partisans. They appeared behind enemy lines. – We think this has been an ammunition depot for partisans, says Korsvik. – They had the task of monitoring boat traffic and reporting back to the Soviet Union during the war. They probably had weapons and ammunition lying in a partisan cave nearby, Korsvik says.
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Found cartridges and grenades from World War II in Kirkenes – news Troms and Finnmark
