Decades are needed: the demining process of the Mykolaiv region continues

Mykolaiv Oblast still remains one of the most mined regions of Ukraine. After the capture of Kherson, the region restrained the further advance of Russian troops in the south — some settlements in the region were under occupation or on the line of confrontation. Since then, the occupiers actively mined these territories, especially during the counteroffensive of the Armed Forces.

After the de-occupation, their demining began. How this process is taking place today, which of the international partners are involved in it and how long it takes to clean up the entire area - read in the NikVesti article.

10% OF THE MYKOLAIV REGION IS POTENTIALLY MINED

Since the beginning of the Great War, 754,000 hectares, which is 30% of the entire region, have been potentially mined in Mykolaiv Oblast, the Mykolaiv Regional Military Administration reported to NikVesti. We are talking about territories that need to be examined, since they were occupied by Russian troops for a certain time. The territories of Bashtanka and Mykolaiv districts are the most mined, NikVesti said in the Main Department of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine in the Mykolaiv region.

At the same time, the mine situation in the still occupied villages of Vasylivka, Pokrovka and Pokrovske, located on the territory of the Kinburn spit, remains unknown. There are cases of wild animals and civilians being detonated on landmines, local resident Oleksandr, who was there for a long time under occupation, told Nikvesti earlier.

«They (Russian invaders, — note) mined the entire spit: from the economic zone to the Black Sea. They even blow themselves up. We used to have 70 wild horses all the time. The last time I was there, their bones were lying there, the horses are practically gone, they are being blown up. At any time, you can hear an explosion — it means that someone has come. My neighbor went fishing and blew up a mine,» the man says.

Demining the Kinburn spit after the liberation of this area will not be easy. «It will not only be about surface demining, but also underwater demining. The same applies to the territories of Ochakiv region. The settlements of the Kutsurub and Ochakiv communities are shelled by the enemy almost every day, so the remains of ammunition are scattered both on land and in the water,» Deputy Chief of the Main Directorate for Response to Emergency Situations Vitalii Mokrenko explained to NikVesti.

«A FARMER I KNOW EXPLODED ON MINE WHEN HE WANTED TO WORK THE FIELD»

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However, not only protected areas of the Mykolayiv region, but also agricultural land, residential sectors, railways, highways, areas along power lines, gas and water pipelines, and especially areas near former enemy positions, were mined, the State Emergency Service reports. There you can find a lot of explosive objects: Russian mines, detonators, unexploded enemy shells.

Since the beginning of the year alone, 43 people have been blown up by landmines in the region: 24 cases in the Bashtanka district and 19 in the Mykolaiv district. 10 people died, another 47 were injured, including three children.

Farmers who work in the fields of the Mykolaiv region despite the mine threat are also undermined. Several cases of detonation due to the detonation of unexploded shells in the field happened in the village of Zelenyi Hai, local farmer Ivan told NikVesti.

«One field [the Russian military] was mined with anti-aircraft missiles: «cassettes» fell from the sky, some exploded, and some remained. Here, an acquaintance blew up on a minivan. He wanted to cultivate the field and came across a mine, it exploded. We blew up another one with a combine harvester,» said the farmer.

As of September 2023, the territory of the village was demined, sappers were working there all the time, Ivan recalls.

«We have already demined everything. If the sappers found something, they immediately destroyed it. We were warned in special groups: be careful, sappers will be working now, there will be explosions. But last year we still worked in the field all the time,» he added.

MORE THAN 12 THOUSAND HECTARES HAVE BEEN CLEARED

Demining of the region began almost immediately after the de-occupation of communities. As of the beginning of September 2023, pyrotechnicians have surveyed more than 90 thousand hectares of the region, 12 thousand 560 hectares have already been demined, Mykolaiv RMA reported. Most of them are fields, as these areas have priority in demining. Actually, in March of this year, Mykolaiv Oblast became the first among the regions where humanitarian demining of agricultural lands began.

«A total of more than 60,000 hectares of agricultural land has already been cultivated. The plan for this year is about 85 thousand. We will fulfill it,» Vitalii Kim assured.

The pace of demining in the region is gradually increasing, Mykolayiv RMA reported. First of all, this is due to the involvement of additional specialists who go out every day to clear the territories. For this, pyrotechnicians of the State Special Service of Transport, the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the State Service for Emergency Situations, as well as international humanitarian demining operators work. A total of 67 pyrotechnic groups are working on the «cleaning» of the region, RMA added.

They begin their work with a survey of potentially mined areas with metal detectors. The remote-controlled MV-4 mechanized demining machine, which can withstand even the detonation of mines and ammunition, is also involved in the process. This machine actually allows you to protect the lives of sappers, as it is able to independently perform an inspection and cleaning of the territory, search for buried objects and, in fact, demining.

After the sappers have found the mined area, the perimeter of the demining zone is surrounded. Further, with the help of a drone, sappers control the process of demining, Oleksandr Dvoretskyi, senior member of the demining group, told NikVesti.

«We are currently checking the area that has been exposed: is there safety for the population, is there no one in the affected area. After the report comes that it is safe and possible to work, decontamination will be carried out,» he explained.

International partners also help a lot with the demining of Mykolaiv Oblast. For example, the United Nations allocated 4 million dollars for the purchase of means for demining the region. However, these funds will probably not be enough for all mined territories, believes the head of the RMA Vitalii Kim.

«I think that it will not be enough, because only the number of mines that need to be destroyed and the territory — it will take a lot of time and a lot of money,» he said.

At the same time, Latvian and Swiss benefactors are involved in demining, NikVesti reported in the State Emergency Service Department of the Mykolaiv region. They handed over 10 modern multi-frequency metal detectors to emergency workers and conducted trainings for Ukrainian pyrotechnicians.

A total of 5 international operators of anti-mine activity are involved in the «cleaning» of the region today, the Mykolaiv RMA specifies: «HaloTrust», «Demining Solutions», the Representative Office of the Danish Refugee Council in Ukraine, the Norwegian international organization Norwegian People's Aid and the Representative Office of DanChurchAid in Ukraine.

ROBOTIC TECHNIQUES ARE REQUIRED TO ACCELERATE THE SPEED OF MINING

However, for more effective demining of the region, robotic equipment is needed, Deputy Chief of the Main Directorate for Response to Emergency Situations Vitalii Mokrenko said in a comment to NikVesti. This will allow, he says, both to speed up the pace of work and to secure the lives of pyrotechnicians.

«Replenishment and reinforcement of the garrison with special robotic equipment is an issue that is always timely. After all, it is not only about speed, but also about safety for our pyrotechnicians, who can work on demining not in the immediate vicinity of explosive objects, but from a certain distance,» said Vitalii Mokrenko.

These are machines for remote demining of the DOK-ING MV-10 type or similar, the Mykolaiv RMA clarified. A chain tool is installed at the front of such equipment, under the action of which anti-personnel and anti-tank mines are triggered.

How long it will take to demine the entire Mykolaiv region is currently unknown, says Vitalii Mokrenko: «Today it is difficult to talk about the pace of demining all territories of the region, because there are certain factors that affect this process. First, the density of mining in our region should be taken into account. Bringing all areas to a safe state requires the involvement of a large number of specialists and modern special equipment.»

However, the head of Mykolayiv RMA Vitalii Kim predicts that this process may take tens of years. It is significant that as early as January 2022, before the full-scale invasion, sappers continued demining the territory of Mykolaiv Oblast after the Second World War, in particular, the Kinburn Spit.

Yuliia Boichenko, NikVesti