Le Figaro Nice
An underwater mine clearance operation was carried out on Tuesday off the coast of Cap d'Antibes (Alpes-Maritimes) by specialized divers from the French Navy, under the authority of the maritime prefecture of the Mediterranean.
This involved destroying three shells from the First World War, discovered unexpectedly a short time ago.
One of three shells discovered off the coast of Cap d'Antibes.
Maritime Prefecture of the Mediterranean
A sensitive operation given the age of the projectiles and their conservation conditions for more than a century on the Mediterranean.
For safety reasons, the maritime authorities first issued an order prohibiting swimming, navigation and scuba diving from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. within a radius of 500 meters around the area concerned.
It was then necessary to scare away the marine fauna present on the site in preparation for countermining the three devices.
This is with the aim of preserving the surrounding marine biodiversity.
Also read: Thirty years after their disappearance off the coast of Nice, two divers found 100 meters deep
42 operations in 2023
Once these precautions were taken, the shells were raised a few tens of centimeters from the surface and destroyed using explosives.
The operation took place without difficulty.
Just like the 42 others carried out in the department during the year 2023.