Vehicle Borne Bombs on the up
by Allen Vanguard
Open source information* suggests that the number of vehicle borne improvised explosive devices (VBIEDs) has more than doubled in the past 12 months worldwide
The total number of VBIED incidents from 1 January to 5 November 2004 was 245, in 2003 there were just 84. The conflict in Iraq is the obvious reason for the increase: 185 of this years VBIED incidents happened there, but two years ago there were none reported in the country.
Barry Taylor at Allen-Vanguard, comments: VBIEDs are widely regarded as one of the most challenging tasks that a bomb technician can face. He must apply all his skills, experience and EOD tools and accessories in the render safe procedure.
After extensive liaison with bomb technicians, Allen-Vanguard has upgraded its Hook & Line (HAL) Vehicle Access Kit to meet the current demands of the field. Improvements include a multi-purpose clamp as well as a range of field-proven specialist tools to assist with vehicle entry or clearance.
All the vehicle access tools adhere to the same primary and overriding criteria: they are simple to use and quick to rig, usually only taking seconds, thus minimising the bomb technician's time at risk from the device, Taylor concluded.
VBIED STATISTICS
|
|
2001 |
2002 |
2003 |
2004 (to5 Nov 04) |
|
Total VBIED incidents |
64 (100%) |
56 (100%) |
84 (100%) |
245 (100%) |
|
No of these exploded |
48 (75%) |
40 (71%) |
72 (86%) |
217 (88%) |
|
No of these rendered safe/finds |
16 (25%) |
16 (29%) |
12 (14%) |
28 (12%) |
|
No of total that are suicide VBIEDs |
2 (3%) |
4 (7%) |
38 (45%) |
93 (38%) |
|
No of countries with VBIED incidents |
12 |
13 |
18 |
21 |
|
No of total incidents in Iraq |
- |
- |
34 |
185 |
|
No of total in Iraq that are suicide |
- |
- |
24 (71%) |
80 (43%) |
Deductions:
No of countries experiencing VBIED incidents is increasing
No of VBIED incidents has increased largely due to Iraq (underlying trend is generally static at around 50-65 per annum)
Effectiveness of devices is increasing (we manage to render safe less)