Thursday 13, July
Thousands evacuated from Marzahn following discovery of 500-kilo WW2 bomb
Starting at 6:00 this morning, thousands of residents of the Berlin district of Marzahn were asked to leave their homes to allow a 500-kilo bomb to be rendered harmless and removed. Police have set up a 500-metre exclusion zone around the site, with the disposal set to take place at around 12:00 noon.
The device, which has lain undetected since it fell in an air raid during the Second World War, was discovered on Tuesday afternoon. According to forensic scientists, there was no immediate danger from the bomb, although the site has been guarded around the clock since it was discovered.
For those new to Berlin, this sort of thing happens a lot. 2,000 tonnes of undetonated World War II explosives are found in Germany each year – and it can create some pretty unique problems. Last year, when high temperatures led to uncontrolled fires in Grunewald, firefighters were not able to directly tackle the blaze because the forest is littered with World War 2 munitions. It turns out that’s where they’ve been dumping all those deactivated bombs over the years.
