Museum & Cave

16th March

It was a pleasant walk to the Cave, amongst the hills despite the dodgy road. I did get a ride back by a little man on his moped who offered me a lift.

The cave once served as shelter and accommodation for the people during the US bombing

Here you can see shrapnel dents on the cave walls.

The small museum also hits home

Between 1964 and 1973 US forces dropped an estimated 2 million tons of ordnance on Laos.

Remnants Of War:

As a result of the Second Indochina War, the Lao PDR has the unwanted distinction of being the most heavily bombed country in the world. During the war, United States forces flew more than 500,000 bombing runs over Laos. 

More than two million tons of explosive ordnance were dropped on the country-more tonnage than was used during the whole of World War ll.

Close to 240 million bombs alone were dropped over Laos during the nine years

of conflict. It is estimated that as many as 80 million bombs failed to explode and remain scattered throughout the country. In addition, over four million big bombs were dropped and the extensive ground battles in a number of provinces left behind a large amount of other unexploded ordnance (UXO), including mortars, artillery shells, landmines and grenades.

Previous land battles, including those which took place during the Second World War and the First Indochina War, also contributed to the remnants of war still en-dangering lives in the Lao PDR. A country-wide survey conducted in 1996-1997 found that 15 of the 17 provinces in the Lao PDR have significant UXO contamination, with at least 25 percent of all settlements in the country reporting UXO.

As well as UXO, large quantities of defoliants and herbicides, including Agent Orange, were used during the Second Indochina War. Today, areas of land remain unproductive, chemicals continue to pollute food sources and bodies of water, and children are being born with related disabilities. Little is known about the full and ongoing impact of the chemical warfare on civilian populations in the Lao PDR.

Village houses & bananas growing. I still get a kick out of seeing bananas growing on trees.