Dennis Philip walks through the garden outside his home on the eastern edge of Honiara, the capital of the Solomon Islands. Rows of vegetables grow in the rich soil—food his family sells at the city’s Central Market to help support themselves while he continues his studies.
Dennis is a nurse training to become a midwife, working toward a career helping mothers and newborns. He shares the small property with his brother, who is also studying in the capital. Together, their families farm the land to supplement their income while they complete their education.
But when Dennis digs into the soil, he knows he may uncover something dangerous.
UXO found by Dennis’s family while gardening the land beside his home
Disturbing discoveries
Dennis and his family moved to their property two years ago. As they began clearing the land and planting crops, they quickly realized the ground held more than fertile soil.
While digging in the garden, they unearthed their first unexploded munition. Then another. And another.
Since moving to the area, Dennis says the family has found more than 15 pieces of unexploded ordnance (UXO) buried in their land. Each time they uncover one, Dennis contacts the police so specialists can remove it safely. Sometimes the discoveries come so frequently that he must temporarily store the items in an old rice bag until authorities arrive.
What worries him most is how easily children might encounter the explosives.
“The kids find them while they are playing and carry them,” Dennis explains. “I teach them not to touch them.”
A battlefield that shaped the Pacific theater
The land Dennis gardens was once at the center of one of the most important campaigns of World War II.
From 1942 to 1943, Guadalcanal and the surrounding Solomon Islands were the focus of months of intense fighting across land, sea, and air. Allied forces fought to capture and hold Henderson Airfield – an airstrip behind where Dennis and his family live today – while Japanese forces launched repeated attacks to retake it.
The area was bombarded relentlessly. Warships shelled the airfield, aircraft struck from above, and ground forces battled for control of the surrounding land. By the end of the campaign, more than 30,000 soldiers had been killed across the Solomon Islands, and hundreds of aircraft and ships were destroyed.
The battle marked a turning point in the Pacific war.
But when the fighting stopped, thousands of explosives were left behind.
Buried beneath the soil were bombs, grenades, and other munitions—many of them unexploded. Over time, they became hidden from view, but not removed.
Today, nearly 80 years later, families like Dennis’s are living, farming, and building on the same land, where the legacy of that conflict still lies just below the surface.
A persistent challenge
Dennis’s experience reflects a much larger challenge facing communities around Honiara.
In 2023, HALO teams conducted a non-technical survey of the area surrounding Henderson Airfield to better understand the scale of the problem. By reviewing police records, historical military documents, and carrying out field observations, HALO identified more than 500 acres of land likely threatened by UXO.
Royal Solomon Islands Police explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) teams have already destroyed 974 explosive items in the area since callout records began in 2011. But this figure likely represents only a fraction of what remains buried underground – near where families like Dennis’s are planting food and children are playing.
Dennis and his son, Kaddy
Clearing the way for safer futures
Dennis hopes for a future where his children can play safely in the garden and where families like his can farm without fear.
Removing the UXO would mean more than eliminating a threat. It would unlock land for safe use, allowing communities around Honiara to building home, cultivate crops, and invest in their futures.
HALO teams are already working to make that possible. By identifying hazardous land, raising awareness in communities, and clearing explosives from the ground, HALO helps reduce risk and create safer environments for families living with the legacy of war.
Nearly eight decades after World War II ended, explosives remain hidden beneath the soil. But with sustained support, that can change.
For Dennis and his family, clearing this land would mean something simple but powerful: the chance to grow food, raise their children, and build a future without fear.
A future where their playground is no longer a battleground, but a safe place to live and grow.
