WWII-era bombs still being discovered in Albania's coast

 French and Albanian divers pulling out of the water WW II shells, mortars and ammunition

French and Albanian divers have joined hands to demine parts of the sea, but no one is certain how many mortars, shells, and ammunition might still be submerged.

Under the crystal water of the Albanian Riviera, shells and grenades from World War II are rusting on the seabed, polluting the water and endangering lives. Divers must remove these old explosive devices - a difficult and dangerous task.

These divers are fishing for World War II bombs at one of the most beautiful sites along Albania's Adriatic coastline. Their mission is to recover shells and grenades that are over seven decades old. The munition is pilluting the water and poses a threat to swimmers. 

Now a group of French and Albanian demining divers is clearing the waters.

"These are Italian munitions from World War II with, instead of being shipped back to Italy were abandoned here and thrown into the sea." Ilirian Kristo said, Albanian Clearance Diver Unit.

The teams are well-versed in handling the potentially lethal cast-offs. In any case, an ambulance is parked nearby. 

In less than two hours, the divers collect 85 pieces of ammunition.

"Today, we found mortars and shells of different sizes, from 20 mm to 15 mm. Afterwards, precise identifications are complicated because the state of the ammunition quite deteriorates. So we can't make a precise identification, except by taking the time on land. Underwater is quite complicated." Eduard said, French Mine Clearance Diver.

Albanian troops then collect the shells and destroy them. There are no official estimates of the number of submerged munitions. But experts estimate that there are at least 20 wrecks along this coastline.