Cologne Evacuates 20,500 Residents After WWII Bomb Discovery

Cologne is seeing its biggest evacuation since the end of World War II after three large, unexploded bombs were found in the city. The American bombs — two each weighing 20,000 pounds, and a third weighing 10,000 pounds — were discovered at a shipyard on Monday, authorities said. A large evacuation effort was underway Wednesday morning, as authorities closed off a broad “danger zone” around the site.

As many as 20,500 people are being evacuated, with homes and businesses among myriad public facilities involved in the operation, authorities say. Those affected include a hospital, two retirement homes and Cologne’s second biggest train station. Schools, museums, churches and two major cultural venues — the Musical Dome theater and the Philharmonic Hall — are also contained inside the evacuation zone.

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Defusing the bombs cannot start until the complete evacuation area is clear, city officials said. “This is only possible if all those concerned leave their homes or work in time and do not stay in the evacuation area from the very beginning,” the statement said. Residents were also told to stay calm and given advice on visiting loved ones or friends during the evacuation and not to travel to the closed zone.

The officials emphasized the need for full cooperation -- unsuccessfully trying to quash the local disputes, and warning that anyone who fails to evacuate will be dragged away by force with the help of the police if necessary.

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Although unexploded World War bombs are still regularly found in Cologne, no such operation of this size has occurred in the city since the end of the war. German city was bombed excessively by the Allies and was subject to 262 air-raids in the war. The raids resulted in a death toll of around 20,000 and laid waste much of the Old Town, including 91 of its 150 churches.

Since the end of the war the city has experienced more than 40 years of extensive reconstruction and restoration of important historical landmarks and the partial recovery of the city centre. Yet smaller evacuations are still a fact of life. In October, 10,000 residents were evacuated when another American bomb was discovered, and a second evacuation in December affected 3,000 people.

The exact timeline remains unclear as the city works to finish this newest operation, although officials said they hoped the bomb would be defused by Wednesday.