Melting ice in the Italian Dolomites reveals munitions from World War I

About 250 pieces of munitions dating back to World War I, which had become visible as a result of the rapid retreat of glaciers in the Italian Dolomites, were removed. A statement sent by the Italian Army's Julia Alpine Brigade to Ofek News on Tuesday said that hikers and nature experts found artillery shells, mortar shells and other ammunition in the Trentino-Alto Adige region, and one of these ammunitions was found following a traffic accident.

The first piece of unexploded ordnance found this summer was a 90 mm mortar shell, which was discovered in June after a car rolled and fell into a ravine near Caldonazzo, after the driver forgot to activate the handbrake when stopping the vehicle, according to the army. When the firefighters worked to remove the car, they noticed the shell, dating back to World War I, at the base of a tree, and a team specialized in dealing with explosives later removed it.

As for the other munitions, they date back to what is known as the “White War” that took place between the Italian and Austro-Hungarian armies between 1915 and 1918. They were concentrated in an area frequented by hikers in the summer, and which had been covered in snow and ice for more than a hundred years. A spokesman for the Julia Alpine Division told Ofoq News on Tuesday that specialists from the division's 2nd Engineer Regiment (experts in rescue operations and high-risk military operations in the highlands) began clearance operations in early August.

The summer campaign to recover these munitions ended on October 16. These munitions were found on trails frequented by climbers, hikers, and mountain workers, as well as other areas not accessible to the general public.

The army noted that the munitions clearance campaign required “strong mountaineering skills” to deal with “hard-to-reach areas, at high altitudes, and in extremely difficult terrain.” In the area between the summit of the Cima del Fratte and the Forcella Ferrolo mountain pass near the Pino region, the discovery of a cache of 75 mm artillery shells led to the closure of a popular mountaineering route earlier this month, before it was later reopened.

Ammunition dating back to the First and Second World Wars is found annually, according to the army, but specialized operations to deal with them are only possible in late summer and early fall, when weather conditions allow for safer operations before the snowfall that begins in late October. Extremely high temperatures over the past few years have led to the rapid retreat of the Cari Alto and Lares glaciers, making the area less stable for workers.

An awareness campaign is currently underway aimed at warning hikers and local residents in mountainous areas against touching or moving any suspicious munitions if they are found. Instead, they should report the matter to the local authorities and attach photos of the discovered munitions.

According to local authorities, low snowfall rates during the winter of 2025, coupled with very high temperatures in the summer of 2026, contributed to an acceleration of the melting of glaciers in the Trentino region.