One year ago, the controlled explosion of a major World War II bomb in the north of Munich caused quite a stir. The bomb was found close to the Allianz Group head office. A 500 kg bomb was just successfully defused in Hanover. Some 9000 people had to temporarily leave their homes. These aerial bombs are a legacy of war not only limited to Germany.
Towards the end of the Bavarian school holidays, residents in Munich’s Schwabing district were subject to a bomb alert. Once instructed to leave their homes, the police patrolled the eerily empty streets and asked the last remaining pedestrians and residents to evacuate the restricted zone. The controlled explosion finally took place in the early evening, after several attempts to defuse the bomb had failed. The spectacular images posted on YouTube shortly afterwards showed fire balls and burning roofs and received thousands of hits. Despite numerous broken windows and doors, the damage to property was limited. However, lost profits for shops and restaurants near the incident zone were larger.
Bombs from World War II are still regularly being found in Germany. Even almost 70 years after the war, many unexploded bombs have yet to be discovered. Most are found during construction work, or when prospective property buyers get a detailed aerial analysis done. Estimates suggest that up to 20 percent of all World War II bombs failed to explode. So there is a constant risk of finding an unexploded bomb – pretty much anywhere.
