Man Killed in Likely UXO Blast in Prey Veng Quarry

An explosion killed a 26-year-old quarry worker on Sunday in Prey Veng province after an excavator hit what is thought to have been unexploded ordnance (UXO), police said.

Bok Choy was watching as an excavator dug nearby in the Long Nam Quarry in Ba Phnom district’s Choeung Phnom commune, when the machine hit what police suspect was UXO, said district police chief On Sokun.

“It exploded and cut [Bok Choy] across the stomach and he died instantly,” he said, adding that no shrapnel was found in the victim’s body.

Mr. Sokun said police have not found any shrapnel in the quarry because falling rocks immediately covered the site of the explosion.

He added that TNT, an explosive commonly used for blasting in quarries, had been ruled out as a cause of the accident. “It was not TNT that exploded because the UXO was underground and the excavator hit it while digging out rock,” Mr. Sokun said.

Bok Choy’s body was sent Sunday to his family in Battambang province’s Banan district, he added.

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