What Does It Feel Like To Drive Over An UXO

Ask anyone who has been driving in Abyei in the last 13 or 14 months and they can tell you exactly what it feels like to drive over an unexploded ordinance or UXO, including myself. All of us can now put it in the "been there done that" file. You are all probably wondering what in blue bloody.... is he talking about.

Well about a week ago someone discovered what they thought was a landmine right in the middle of the road just 150 metres from the entrance of our camp. So the army went and looked at it and yep it was, well not a landmine, but an unexploded mortor round. I do not exaggerate either when I say it was right in the middle of the road. The same road that goes into Abyei from the south. Everyone drives it if you are going into town. It is a dirt road and the UXO was right in the inside(right) wheel track. It obviously failed to detonate, probably last May when the big clash happened here. When they re-did the road it must have gotten bulldozed over and over time the fins started showing, I can see how it would look like a landmine. It sort of looks like one of those little ones with the fins on them, take a look at the photos.

The first picture is looking south down the road, just past the trucks on the right is the UN camp

This next photo is of the tail end of the mortar sticking up out of the ground in the road.

Close up of above photo

In answer to the question; I didn't feel anything at all.