Japan Airport Reopens After World War II Bomb Explodes Near Runway

Miyazaki Airport in southwestern Japan resumed operations Thursday morning, a day after its closure due to the explosion of a wartime dud shell that damaged a section of its taxiway, local media reported.

A Japan Airlines plane to Fukuoka departed at around 7:40 a.m. local time in the first flight since the airport was shut for safety checks on Wednesday, Xinhua news agency reported, citing Kyodo News.

The transport ministry office at Miyazaki Airport said Wednesday that a blast was heard on a taxiway shortly before 8 a.m. local time as air traffic controllers saw smoke rising from the site.

The airport office said the explosion created an oval-shaped hole measuring about 7 meters long, 4 meters wide and 1 meter deep on asphalt pavement near the taxiway.

No one was injured and a total of 87 flights to and from the airport were cancelled as of 2 p.m. local time as the runway was closed for the day.

Japan’s Self-Defense Forces and authorities investigating the site have determined that the explosion was from a 500-pound that was dropped during World War II.

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