Thousands evacuated as experts prepare to defuse WWII bomb in Potsdam

Thousands of residents have left their homes ahead of the planned defusing of a 250-kilogram World War II bomb discovered in the German city of Potsdam just outside Berlin.
Some 6,500 people living in the affected area had been asked to evacuate by 8:30 a.m. (0630 GMT) on Tuesday morning, with emergency workers currently going from door to door to check if everyone had left, according to a spokeswoman for the city administration.
Train traffic at the city’s main station has been suspended.
An exclusion zone with a 700-metre radius has been set up around the U.S.-made bomb that was found during construction work in the city centre.
Bomb disposal expert Mike Schwitzke said he expected the defusing operation to take between 30 minutes and an hour.
It is not uncommon for unexploded World War II ordnance to be found in Germany, even more than 80 years after the war ended.
The bombs are usually discovered during construction work, sometimes resulting in major evacuation operations.
(dpa/NAN)
We have recently deactivated our website's comment provider in favour of other channels of distribution and commentary. We encourage you to join the conversation on our stories via our Facebook, Twitter and other social media pages.
More from Peoples Gazette

Agriculture
FG tasks ECOWAS on leveraging financing strategies for agroecology
The federal government has urged stakeholders in the agriculture and finance sectors in the West Africa region to leverage financing strategies to enhance agroecology practices

Politics
Katsina youths pledge to deliver over 2 million votes to Atiku
“Katsina State is Atiku’s political base because it is his second home.”

Heading 5
ACF hails 19 northern governors for creating regional security trust fund
The chairman urged northern governors to sustain the political will behind the initiative

Heading 1
Canadian authorities charged two men for defrauding international students $126,000; hunt fleeing suspect
CBSA officers executed search warrants at the suspects’ homes and businesses, where electronic devices containing the evidence of their fraudulent activities were recovered.

Hot news Home top
Spain beat Belgium 2-1, face France in World Cup semi-finals Tuesday
The European champions move on to the semi-finals against back-to-back finalists France on Tuesday at Dallas Stadium.

NationWide
Focus on criminals, stop targeting journalists, CPJ tells Nigerian security agencies
She also pointed out harsh bail requirements imposed on journalists, describing Mr Ugagbe’s bail conditions as “utterly punitive.”

Education
Tinubu upgrades Nasarawa poly to university
Mr Onanuga said the approval followed a proposal by Senator Ahmed Aliyu, who represents the Nasarawa West Senatorial District.

Lagos
Lagos govt signs agreement to automate vehicle registration
Mr Osiyemi said the initiative would simplify and speed up vehicle registration by eliminating cumbersome processes.





