In brief: Land mines float into South Korea
SEOUL, South Korea – Dozens of land mines have washed up on South Korean shores in recent days, apparently swept from North Korea by torrential rains. One killed a man and wounded another, the military said today.
Two men discovered two mines in wooden boxes floating in a river while they were fishing near the border with North Korea on Saturday night, according to an officer with the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
One mine exploded while they were carrying it home, killing one of the men immediately, said the official. The other man was seriously wounded and was taken to a nearby hospital.
It was not clear if the men knew the objects they picked up were land mines.
The officer said about 30 such mines have been swept to South Korea since Saturday, apparently riding rapids triggered by heavy rains in the North. The land mines can be triggered by a slight pressure, he said.
VICTORIA, B.C. – A Canadian waterbombing plane battling wildfires deep in British Columbia’s interior crashed on Saturday, search and rescue officials said.
Capt. Marguerite Dodds-Lepinski, the public affairs officer at the province’s Joint Rescue Coordination Center in Victoria, said it was believed that the plane had two crew members on board. Their fate is currently unknown.
Dodds-Lepinski said two search-and-rescue aircraft from Vancouver Island were en route to the crash site about 160 miles east of Vancouver.