Cache of WW II bombs found in Nueva Vizcaya

BAYOMBONG, Nueva Vizcaya – A cache of World War II bombs and explosives, some of them still usable, were found in the hinterlands of this northern Philippine province, a belated army report said Saturday. First Lieutenant Joseph Andog of the army’s 81st Infantry Battalion (IB) based in Fort Magsaysay in Nueva Ecija told GMANews.TV that a tip from concerned citizens from remote Sitio Caucon of Canabuan village of Santa Fe town in Nueva Vizcaya, led to the discovery of the said war materiel last week. The army revealed that Sitio Caucon used to be the site of a major headquarters of the Japanese army that defended its command in the northern Philippines from the advancing American soldiers during WW II. A partial list of the materiel included four projectiles for 155 mm howitzer, 8 large mortar bombs, several aerial bombs and other large projectiles of unknown caliber, thousands of bullets and boxes of hand grenades. Andog said that members of the communist New People’s Army (NPA) may have stumbled upon the war goods and have been trying to salvage some usable explosives because a bunch of brand new blasting devices were found in the discovery site. “We surmise NPA cadres who regularly pass by the area have planned to re-activate some of the working bombs with the use of modern blasting devices found amongst the cache," he said. Besides Nueva Ecija, the 81st IB’s is also operating in six towns in Nueva Vizcaya including Alfonso Castañeda, Santa Fe, Dupax del Sur, Dupax del Norte, Aritao and Bambang. — Floro Taguinod/LBG, GMANews.TV