In Croatia, the government stipulated that demining should be carried out by mechanical means. The small commercial demining company Diz-Eko could not afford to buy such a machine, so they asked if they could rent one, to which we readily agreed. Commercial demining companies need to be highly productive for economic reasons and this one was no exception. The DIGGER D-3 cleaned huge areas at a breakneck speed. Maybe even a little too fast. To save time, the Croatian operator would stand barely 7 m behind the machine, whereas the safety standards stipulate a minimum distance of 50 m. However, one day an explosion occurred: the machine triggered an anti-tank mine of several kilograms of TNT the presence of which had not been suspected. The machine acted as a screen, saving the life of the operator without being damaged itself. It is only a pity that the company in question never paid its rental bill… something that happens from time to time in the world of mine clearance.
