A navy operation to locate hidden WWII bombs in a Tuvalu lagoon has come to end after two weeks of searching.
Australian minehunter HMAS Diamantina just spent two weeks combing Nanumea Lagoon looking for any signs of unexploded bombs and shells.
The Diamantia and support vessel ADV Reliant arrived at Funafuti on July 1 as part of Operation Render Safe 2026.
Tuvalu Prime Minister Feleti Teo welcomed the navy ships, calling their mission as deeply significant for his nation.
“As a small island nation, our lagoons and surrounding marine environment are central to our way of life,” he says.
“Explosive remnants of war are more than relics of history; they are unfinished business from a conflict that our people did not create or want but whose legacy we continue to live with today.”
WHAT IS RENDER SAFE? The Australian Defence Force operation identifies and safely disposes of unexploded bombs and shells across the Pacific left behind from World War II. It operates annually or at the urgent request of governments and has run for more than 20 years. Source: ADF
NAVY UPDATES SURVEY
The survey of the lagoon was asked for by the Tuvalu Government and took two weeks, finishing today (July 14).
(The lagoon was used as an airbase by the US during the war as the villagers were moved to another atoll)
The 2026 operation commander, Nick Lee says the work they did built on surveys done in 2022.
The new navy survey will be used to guide future clearance operations that will reduce the threat to villagers and vessels.
“For Tuvalu, and many communities across the Pacific, the scars of the conflict 80 years ago remain,” commander Lee says.
“Unexploded ordnance continues to threaten lives, restrict farming and endanger marine ecosystems.
“We need to identify the number, size and type of unexploded ordnance so that, with the continued consent of the Tuvalu Government, we can return in the future to safely remove those hazards and help protect the people and marine environment.”
On the Tuvalu Government’s Facebook media page, Australia’s acting High Commissioner to Tuvalu, Charlene Watego, described the operation as “a perfect example” of Tuvaluan-Australian partnership.
Commander Lee reaffirmed Australia’s support for Pacific-led solutions.
“Australia does not deploy unilaterally. We are here at the request of the Government of Tuvalu,” he said.
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