45,000 evacuated to defuse massive WWII bomb

All people within 1.2-mile radius forced to leave; all traffic will stop

www.msnbc.msn.com...

KOBLENZ, Germany — Officials in Germany's western city of Koblenz say some 45,000 residents have to be evacuated as officials try to defuse a World War II era bomb discovered in the Rhine river.

The BBC reported that this is the biggest bomb-related evacuation ever in Germany since the war.

City officials said Saturday that the massive British 1.8-ton bomb will be defused early Sunday, requiring all residents within a radius of about 1.2 miles of the bomb site to leave their homes for the day.

Article goes on to say "The British bomb was found last week alongside a 275-pound bomb dropped there by U.S. forces during WWII, after Rhine's water level fell due to lack of rain."

Merry Xmas Germany!!

Your pals, America

reply to post by Pauligirl


Amazing!!



45k is alot of people actually.. Is this thing a chemical weapon????



The conspiracy theorist in me says........

To dredge up some Nazi Gold, Spear of Destiny, or UFO......but who am I kidding.........

reply to post by Pauligirl


Looks like we left all kinds of little treats for them.

I remember when I was in Malta. I was taken to this church where there was a giant bomb that was dropped during the war and never went off. It's a tourist attraction now.

Good luck to the poor soul defusing this.........

Wow, thats interesting. Makes you wonder how many more are out there, buried beneath unsuspecting populations.

Heres hoping they manage to diffuse it without incident!

Originally posted by sonnny1
reply to post by Pauligirl

 

Amazing!!



45k is alot of people actually.. Is this thing a chemical weapon????

The conspiracy theorist in me says........

To dredge up some Nazi Gold, Spear of Destiny, or UFO......but who am I kidding.........

edit on 3-12-2011 by sonnny1 because: (no reason given)

Members of the Rhineland-Palatinate bomb disposal team inspect an bomb found in the River Rhine in Koblenz, on December 3, 2011. The World War II bomb is to be defused on December 4, 2011 as 45,000 inhabitants are evacuated. AFP PHOTO / THOMAS FREY GERMANY OUT (Photo credit should read THOMAS FREY/AFP/Getty Images)

Article didn't go into any kind of detail of what kind of bomb.

www.bbc.co.uk...
BBC has more information and a video

Officials in the western German city of Koblenz are evacuating about 45,000 people as work begins to defuse a World War II bomb found in the River Rhine.

The 1.8 tonne bomb - dropped by the Royal Air Force (RAF) - was uncovered after water levels in the Rhine fell significantly as a result of a prolonged dry spell.

Everyone living within a 2km (1.25 mile) radius of the bomb site has been ordered to leave the area.

Experts will defuse the bomb on Sunday. Philip Hayton reports.

In WWII it was called a "blockbuster" as it could destroy an entire city block.

reply to post by morder1


It says in the artcile that it is Britsh.

reply to post by JBA2848

The British bomb was found last week alongside a 275-pound bomb dropped there by U.S. forces during WWII, after Rhine's water level fell due to lack of rain.

Maybe made by the British, but says dropped by the US

Well, war is the gift that keeps on giving.

In Cambodia they still have water buffalo blow up for no apparent reason every so often (as well as kids and aid workers) from land mines spread like rice over the landscape. In Europe, I seem to come across stories every few years like this one. The last one I recall was a live WW-II hand grenade coming up with a potato crop harvest. At least the war was back in the 40's and before Depleted Uranium had been invented.

Originally posted by morder1
reply to post by JBA2848

 

The British bomb was found last week alongside a 275-pound bomb dropped there by U.S. forces during WWII, after Rhine's water level fell due to lack of rain.

Maybe made by the British, but says dropped by the US

I think they mean 2 bombs, one dropped by the RAF and one by the US.

Seems most people don't know that the big Bp oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico was drilling in the middle of a debri field left from the sinking of a German sub off the coast of Florida. The sub was dropping mines in shipping lanes but was sunk before all the mines could be set. The oil spill and the activity afterwards caused a mine to ffloat up on the beach in Florida during the spill.

The wreckage found while BP was scouting out a place to drill.
www.gomr.boemre.gov...

The mine that floated up on shore.
www2.wkrg.com...

Originally posted by morder1
Merry Xmas Germany!!

Your pals, America

Why don't you come to Germany and say it. I'm sure it will be very funny.

But don't worry, the day we invade you we are sure to return those firestorms you like so much.

This is fascinating. I am glad no one was injured. Those people diffusing it are so brave. I can't imagine doing a job where I could be blown up after a single mistake.

There isnt much to worry about something like this. It was underwater most of the time. Any explosives it had in it has long since been rendered useless. The only part that may have still beenl dangerous would be fuse.

Originally posted by Grimpachi
There isnt much to worry about something like this. It was underwater most of the time. Any explosives it had in it has long since been rendered useless. The only part that may have still beenl dangerous would be fuse.

Don't bet on it TNT is very stable underwater.

TNT neither absorbs nor dissolves in water, which allows it to be used effectively in wet environments. Additionally, it is stable compared to other high explosives.

en.wikipedia.org...

Originally posted by ANNED

Originally posted by Grimpachi
There isnt much to worry about something like this. It was underwater most of the time. Any explosives it had in it has long since been rendered useless. The only part that may have still beenl dangerous would be fuse.

Don't bet on it TNT is very stable underwater.

TNT neither absorbs nor dissolves in water, which allows it to be used effectively in wet environments. Additionally, it is stable compared to other high explosives.

en.wikipedia.org...

Take into account that it fell from however many feet and the casing is probably not an attack. Most bombs that era used RDX or HMX as its primary explosive with TNT as the detonator. Being submerged underwater and exposed to current I would think most of the explosives had washed away because both RDX and HMX will revert to a semi-liquid state after time. As I said before the fuse was probably the only thing dangerous left on that because the fuse contain the TNT if that was the explosive used in that particular bomb.

This was my specialty in military.