Hong Kong Police successfully disposed of a naval mine found in the waters off Cape D’Aguilar in a controlled manner this afternoon.
According to a government press release, the bomb was a spherical British naval mine from World War II, measuring 1 meter in height, 1.5 meters in length and about 1 tonne in weight with 500 pounds of high explosives inside.
Officers of the explosive ordnance disposal bureau successfully disposed of the naval mine underwater in a controlled manner at 1.09pm, the release read.
“Police have made comprehensive preparations and deployment plans before conducting the operation, including consulting relevant departments, exploring with stakeholders, holistically assessing the influence of the operation as well as adopting all possible measures to minimize the impacts on the marine environment,” it added.
The Marine Department restricted the waters within a 1-kilometer radius of the naval mine during the disposal operation. Police had also cordoned off hiking trails in the adjacent areas to keep the public away for safety reasons. The airspace around Cape D’Aguilar was listed as a temporary restricted flying zone as well.
The restricted areas around the cape were reopened at 1:50pm and marine traffic was allowed to resume as normal at 3:30pm.
Police received a report from a member of the public on Aug. 9 that a suspected bomb was found when he was diving in the waters to the east of Shek O.
Police immediately conducted an investigation and confirmed on Aug. 19 that the object was a naval mine located in the seabed 15 meters underwater and 1.4 kilometers to the northeast of Cape D’Aguilar.
