Soldier’s remains found in 1970s-era shipwreck

via Phnom Penh Post, 15 February 2021: A shipwreck from the 1970s is found in the Mekong River, along with the remains of a person onboard. Amazingly, the person can be identified from his name tag.

An inter-ministerial team of underwater ordnance recovery specialists recently found a soldier’s remains at the site of the warship sunken in the Mekong River in Meanchey commune’s Veal village in Kampong Cham province’s Srei Santhor district during Cambodia’s civil war in the 1970s.

The working group was set up by Prime Minister Hun Sen on August 28, last year, to study the site of the shipwreck and remove the unexploded ordnance (UXO) found in and around it.

The discovery of the remains was announced as Minister of Interior Sar Kheng met the underwater UXO clearance team on February 12. The team identified the soldier as Chhim Chheangly and concluded that he was likely a guard on the ship.

“At the site, besides the ordnance, we have found the remains of a young man inside the ship. He was probably a guard and his name was Chhim Chheangly. That is what his name tag made from aluminum clearly states.

Source: Soldier’s remains found in 1970s-era shipwreck | Phnom Penh Post