Royal Navy explosive experts have successfully blown up a rare 400lb German mine off the north Kent coast.
A four-man team from Southern Diving Unit 2 detonated a GX buoyant mine – measuring three feet in diameter – which was caught in a fishing vessel’s nets about a mile off Margate.
The quartet – led by Petty Officer (Diver) Ken Smith – were ferried to the vessel in a police launch, attached a charge to the second world war device and carefully lowered it about ten metres to the sea bed.
A 1,000-metre cordon was put in place by the Coastguard while a controlled explosion was carried out, causing a 25-metre plume.
Lieutenant Dan Herridge, head of Portsmouth-based SDU2, said:
“We don’t often find these type of buoyant mines – they are quite unusual.”
“But it was in good condition so this was quite a delicate operation to make sure everything went smoothly.”
[mappress] Source: royalnavy, October 17, 2011