Dam flood uproots ‘countless’ landmines in Ukraine

Mines uprooted by surging floodwaters could pose a grave danger to civilians across swathes of southern Ukraine for decades to come, the Red Cross said. The vast Soviet-era Kakhovka dam, under Russian control, was breached in the early hours of Tuesday, unleashing floodwaters across the warzone and endangering the lives and welfare of tens of thousands of people.

Ukraine blames Russia for blowing it up. Russia says Ukraine sabotaged the dam at the behest of the West to constrict water supplies to Crimea and disguise its faltering offensive. Some Russian-backed officials said the dam may have collapsed.

The waters have washed over countless land mines sown during the 15-month war and nobody now knows where they are: they could still be in the minefields or could be stuck in the river mud or in fields, gardens and roads across a vast

“In the past we knew where the hazards were. Now we don’t know. All we know is that they are somewhere downstream,” said Erik Tollefsen, head of the Weapon Contamination Unit at the International Committee of the Red Cross.

“It is with a certain horror that we look at the news coming out,” said Tollefsen in an audio clip, adding that World War Two mines found underwater in Denmark in 2015 were still active.

Besides anti-personnel mines, both sides have used vast amounts of artillery shells and anti-tank mines. The exact number of mines in Ukraine is unclear, said Tollefsen.