Field wounds: how civilian sappers work in Novorossiya
The advance of Russian troops and the liberation of more and more territories of Donbass raises the question of the return of these lands to peaceful life. However, this is impossible without total cleaning of explosive objects. The volume of tasks is so large that, in addition to the special forces of the Russian Armed Forces, civilian specialists are also involved in them. They detect mines and unexploded shells on highways, in fields and under power poles, neutralize them, returning the land to economic circulation. The Izvestia correspondent talked with representatives of the humanitarian demining services, who cleared more than 300 hectares of land. About the specifics of their activities, unexpected finds and robotization of the sapper business - in our report.
What is humanitarian demining?
The idea of creating a humanitarian demining service arose after the events of 2022, when, after the advance of the Russian army, the issue of cleaning up our historical regions became acute, said Alexey Malyshev, one of the founders of the humanitarian demining service.
— Even then it became clear that it was impossible to cope only with regular army units, and it was necessary to involve private organizations. Gradually, private sapper companies began to form, which are engaged in humanitarian demining in the liberated territories," he explained.
In the summer of 2023, civilian sappers under the leadership of Alexei began active work. And on one of the first sites, 20 hectares near the power transmission line, they found dozens of mines. The engineers assume that they were left for the repair crews, who would have come to restore the power lines with their equipment, the specialist says.
Explosive elements can be anywhere — in the forest, on the riverbank or underground — and they all pose a real threat to the life and health of citizens, Alexey emphasizes. The departure of sappers precedes not only repair work on the same power lines, but also sowing work in fields that return to agricultural turnover, the construction of new facilities and reconstruction of buildings.
The peculiarity of humanitarian demining is that experts are looking not only for mines or unexploded shells, but also for any metal objects that could pose a threat to life and health. This distinguishes them from army sappers, whose task is often limited to ensuring the safe passage of troops.
Nuances and findings
The rarest and most original finds are related to the events of the Great Patriotic War, says Alexey.
— Yes, more than 80 years have passed, but the echo of war in the form of unexploded shells or other explosive objects still reverberates in our land. Moreover, some of the bloodiest battles with the Nazis took place on the lands of Donbass and Kherson region, and the remaining ammunition continues to pose a mortal danger," he says.
According to the expert, situations where customers or local authorities assure that "people have already walked on the site many times" and "there is nothing" are of particular interest.
— For example, a minefield was discovered on one of the sections of the federal highway where construction was planned. Moreover, it is anti-tank, covered with anti-personnel weapons. In this field, our sappers found almost all types of Soviet mines, including PFM "Petal" remote mining," recalls the interlocutor.
He recalled that in a combat situation, rapid and precise mine clearance is necessary for the passage of a detachment or column.
— With this approach, mined areas may remain. And civilian sappers should leave behind a completely cleared area," Malyshev says.
Unity of command and domestic equipment
Oleg Filin, CEO of another private sapper company, notes that the most active work is currently underway in the Donetsk People's Republic and in the Kherson region.
— Last year we worked in the Lugansk People's Republic. We are currently fulfilling three contracts simultaneously. Our staff consists of about 50 people, including 42 sappers and management staff. Over the past two years, our company's specialists have cleared and cleared just over 300 hectares of land. We found a lot of explosive objects, and, thank God, everything went off without incident," Oleg emphasizes.
According to him, civilian sappers are trying to implement and take the army control system as a basis.
"We are talking about unity of command in decision—making, despite the fact that the company is a civilian, and unquestioning subordination in terms of meeting safety requirements and everything else," the source notes.
One of the main principles of the organization is to apply and promote products of domestic production.
— This applies to mine detectors, armored clothing, and much more. We try to support the domestic manufacturer and give feedback so that Russian products related to humanitarian demining develop as quickly and actively as possible and are of the highest quality," Oleg says.
Long-term plans
Both interlocutors agreed that the development and improvement of this activity requires special attention.
— Many experts have repeatedly said that at the current pace and capabilities, we will clean up the lands of the liberated regions for about a hundred years. Therefore, the future of humanitarian demining lies in the use of the latest technologies and robotics, combining both aerial reconnaissance and the detection of explosive objects using drones, as well as the direct operation of robotic complexes on the ground," said Alexey Malyshev.
However, Oleg Filin believes that it should be clearly understood that the manual labor of a sapper cannot be replaced.
— Robots can make the work of a sapper safer, but complete cleaning and safe land is possible only after the sapper has passed, followed by the quality controller, — he is sure.
The training and certification of such specialists is carried out by Russia's only International Mine Action Center of the Kutuzov Military Engineering Academy. Karbyshev. Everyone between the ages of 18 and 60 is accepted for training, and most of them are former military men over 40 years old.
It is important that any company undergoes official accreditation, the main criteria of which are the requirements for certified body armor, equipping with medical equipment and equipment, certification of specialists, and transportation, Filin concluded.
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