As the tropical heat encompasses East New Britain in Papua New Guinea, multinational explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) technicians move carefully across ground that has for decades held remnants of war.
For Warrant Officer Class Two (WO2) Mitch Dolan, it's a very familiar environment. Now deployed on his third Operation Render Safe, the 20 Explosive Ordnance Disposal Squadron soldier has spent more than a decade working in one of Army's most technically demanding trades.
"This is my 11th year at the squadron and my 10th year qualified in the Royal Australian Engineers EOD trade," WO2 Dolan said.
"I was previously a combat engineer, but I was drawn to EOD for both the mental challenge combined with the physical side of the work."
Operation Render Safe is Australia's enduring Defence-led mission to remove explosive remnants of war left behind from conflicts across the Pacific region.
WO2 Dolan is leading teams to locate, identify and dispose of explosive remnants of war scattered throughout East New Britain, but said the mission was about more than explosives.
"These communities have been living with these hazards for decades," he said.
"When they see us actively removing those dangers from around their homes and villages, the gratitude they show is something that stays with you."
WO2 Dolan first deployed on Operation Render Safe to Nauru in 2022 as part of a small EOD team before returning in 2024 for a record-setting operation in the Solomon Islands.
'When they see us actively removing those dangers from around their homes and villages, the gratitude they show is something that stays with you.'
On Kolombangara Island, his troop removed a significant portion of the munitions collected during the mission, an achievement he still speaks of with pride.
"Render Safe 24 became a record-setting operation in terms of the amount of munitions removed from the community," WO2 Dolan said.
"We removed 3200 World War II-era explosive remnants of war and munitions, and my troop on Kolombangara Island removed the lion's share of that total, so that was a fantastic result for everyone involved."
Now serving as the Wallaby 2 EOD Troop warrant officer, WO2 Dolan's role has shifted from being solely on the tools to mentoring and guiding younger operators through the realities of the trade. The transition, he admits, has been bittersweet.
"Being removed from the tools is never really what a soldier wants," he said.
"But being able to positively influence the troop and help shape younger soldiers has been rewarding in a different way."
WO2 Dolan believes successful EOD operators are not just defined by technical skill, but by their mindset.
"Attention to detail, mental agility and being physically robust are critical," he said.
"But you've also got to maintain humour regardless of conditions and stay enthusiastic about the work."
As Operation Render Safe continues across the Pacific, WO2 Dolan hopes the EOD capability will continue evolving with a changing battlespace.
"The dream is that the capability modernises to deal with current and emerging threats," he said.
"And that our relevance remains high across both kinetic and non-kinetic operations, such as Operation Render Safe."
After three deployments, WO2 Dolan's passion for the role remains unchanged.
"It's still the best job in the Army," he said.
