6th: Excavation and recovery operation in Xinyang City, Henan Province (Aug. 2004)

Outline:: During the preparation period, it rained heavily on 4th and 5th of August, and the area in which negative pressure tents were set up became inundated with 1.5 meter deep water which hampered the preparation work.
Therefore pumps, etc. had to be used to drain the area before it was possible to continue the work.
The daytime temperatures reached above 30℃. Since the site was situated right in front of a major street in a residential area, and observable to the general public, excavation and recovery was carried out during nighttime (19:30 ～ 24:30).
Yellow white phosphorus which probably leaked from the munitions existed in a large area of the burial site. It caught fire in contact with the air on several occasions. Therefore the staff had to work in a highly dangerous environment as they had to excavate munitions while extinguishing fires that might erupt at unpredictable times and locations.