Investigation into Haa blast yet not out

No information about investigation into the unexpected blast in Haa’s army barrack has not been released so far. Bhutanese public are unaware of what caused the accident.

At least 11 soldiers of the Royal Bhutan Army were killed in an explosion of unserviceable ammunition they were trying to dispose. Another five critically injured soldiers were rush to IMTRAT hospital in Haa.

The RBA has ordered an inquiry to ascertain the cause of the accident. The blast was so strong that it blew the tent into pieces. One of the dead body was thrown almost 100m away.

Those deceased were newly trained bomb disposal squad of the RBA.

The incident occurred in a cleared forested area of football ground size in Anakha, three km away from the main road in Jyenkana, cleared to dispose the unserviceable ammunition.

It was learnt that about 5,700 detonators, TNT slabs and PEK explosives were among the ammunition to be disposed of.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay in a statement from India offered his sympathy to the family and the loves ones of the victims. “I was shocked to hear about the tragedy in Haa that cut short the lives of eleven of our young soldiers and injured ten others. Young Bhutanese men in uniform with their entire lives ahead of them, some with wives and children, laid down their lives while in the service of our nation,” the statement he posed in his Facebook reads.

He further said, “I hope that some measure of comfort will come to you knowing that you are not alone in your grief – that people across our country, and Bhutanese everywhere, pray and mourn with you.”