Page "Laotian Civil War" Paragraph 171

A legacy of the civil war is continuing casualties from unexploded ordnance ( UXO ) dropped by the U. S. and Laotian Air Forces from 1964 – 1973.

More than 2 million tons of bombs were dropped on Laos, 30 percent of which failed to explode immediately.

However, UXO remains dangerous to persons coming in contact, purposefully or accidentally, with bombs.

Casualties in Laos from UXO are estimated at 12, 000 since 1973.

In 2006, 33 years after the last bomb was dropped and after decades of UXO clearance programs, 59 people were known to have been killed or injured by UXO.

So abundant are the remnants of bombs on the Plain of Jars that the collection and sale of scrap metal from bombs has been a major industry since the Civil War.