Project Phongsali: The 750 pound bomb we destroyed was one of 4,000,000 “big bombs” that the US dropped on Laos.

Day 57

We destroyed the 750 today.  My first decision of the day was whether to work the exploder and detonate the charge, or position myself where I could film the demolition.  When we destroy a big bomb, we can certainly feel the concussion and hear the explosion but we usually work blind because we’re hunkered under hard cover as much as a mile from the bomb, safe from shrapnel, rocks and other debris.  Today’s demolition was in a deep valley beneath a steep rock cliff that gave us both a scenic view of the countryside and a perfect vantage point for filming the explosion.  That five-dollar seat, right down front, was so great a temptation that I passed on the opportunity to fire the charge.  There will be other big bombs, but rarely a view so unobstructed.

The by-the-book demolition of a 750-pound bomb is pretty simple when the bomb is in a remote area, like today, and there is no necessity to remove fuses or employ other techniques to render it safe without exploding it.

What we did today required no high-tech interventions; it was a “high order demolition.”  In laymen’s terms: “we blew that sucker up.”  Vilosack, our team leader, taped four and a half pounds of TNT onto the belly of the bomb, jammed in a blasting cap, and then followed a half-mile trail of firing cable around several hills as he retreated to the firing point, carrying the exploder with him to insure that no one else on the team could lay hands on that device and inadvertently detonate the bomb early.

The blasting cap, the TNT, the 375 pounds of high explosive inside the bomb, everything, went off without a hitch.  We’d given the villagers two days notice so everyone knew to stay well away from the area, and we only had three or four miles of one-lane road to control.  (As usual, some drivers tried to dodge our barricade but the sentries successfully held everyone back).

My still photos were not well timed. (If you wait until you see the blast before you trip your shutter, you’ve already missed the shot.  The trick is to anticipate the detonation and begin shooting a second before the detonation).  My friend Jerry Redfern banks on his skills and gets remarkable photos; lacking his skill, I hope for luck and am usually disappointed.

My video of the demolition was excellent but I can hardly claim bragging rights since my video camera was sitting on a rock at the time, filming in automatic mode.  It’s a sad commentary on my talent as a photographer that the greater the distance I am from the camera and the less contact I have with the controls, the better the results.  Go figure. Humbling.

As soon as I can, I’ll post the video of the demolition on this website.