The imprint of the Great War is still very strong in Picardy. On November 11, 103 years after the armistice that ended the conflict, Commander Gilles Soreau, head of the regional mine clearance center, describes the activity of his service. Each year, the 18 deminers discover several hundred ammunition and bombs where the battles and bombings took place in the Somme, Oise and Aisne.
France Bleu Picardie: how many munitions from the Great War do you defuse each year in Picardy?
Gilles Soreau: on average, over the last few years in Picardy, we have recovered 70 tonnes. This year we have reached 95 tonnes since we made a large depot in the village of Levergies in the Aisne.
Do you work more on big discoveries or more on an ad hoc basis?
Most of the time it is ammunition that is isolated, found during work in private homes, that is to say windmill sites, public works. The discoveries of large deposits are still relatively rare, as a rule every ten years and sometimes when it is very difficult to treat, it is put on hold for a while before it can be completely emptied.
Are there a lot of individuals calling? Who find bombs in their gardens?
Yes, individuals find a lot of small ammunition mainly. As soon as they do an enlargement of a garage, for example, it is common to come across ammunition when it is located on the former sites of the First World War.
Are these bombs difficult to defuse? Since they are over 100 years old!
Most of the time, we differentiate between bombs and artillery ammunition. These are over 100 years old, that’s for sure, they are relatively easy to identify. Those which are dangerous are destroyed on site before being transported. On the other hand when we speak of bombs it is more of the Second World War and these are a little more complex sometimes to defuse because they were intended to saturate an area and prevent access to the population or to the troops to reconquer the ground and they were trapped. So the neutralization method is much longer and more complex.
In case of discovery of a shell what are the right reflexes to have?
Someone who discovers ammunition will declare it to the town hall, to the police or to the gendarmerie who will notify the Prefecture of their department which will then notify us and make a request for the removal of the ammunition.
Do we have any idea how long it will take to eliminate all the ammunition from the Great War?
Some historians have said that given the amount of ammunition fired and the failure of some that did not work, at the rate they are being processed it would take 600 years! Now, I cannot guarantee the duration but there is still a long time to come and for the next generations with an increased risk since over time the ammunition degrades more and more.