2,500 people evacuated in Poland after a large unexploded WWII bomb

Warsaw, Poland — A large WWII-era unexploded ordnance was found in the Polish city of Wroclaw on Friday, forcing 2,500 residents to evacuate. A 550-pound bomb was found during construction near a railroad overpass in a city in southwestern Poland.

The Polish military announced that this was a German SC-250 aerial bomb used during the war.

The city arranged for buses to transport evacuated residents to safe areas while bomb-disposal experts worked on the scene. According to Polish media reports, train services had to be stopped until the bomb was removed.

Police spokeswoman Alexandra Frouse told TVN24 that not all residents agreed to leave their homes and authorities could not force them. Police urged the public to evacuate, citing “a threat to human health and life from unexploded ordnance.”

During World War II, Wroclaw was the German city of Breslau. It was heavily bombarded by Soviet forces before the German surrender, resulting in heavy fighting and widespread destruction.

After the war, the city became part of Poland when defeated Germany was forced to give up its territory and the borders were redone.

Unexploded ordnance during World War II still causes occasional problems in much of Western Europe. In February, authorities said a bomb similar in size to one found in Poland had detonated. detonated in an “unplanned” explosion Located in Great Yarmouth, England.

Authorities first became aware of the bomb when a contractor dredging a local river spotted it. No one was injured in the explosion, but the area was evacuated.

Last summer Italy was hit by what was probably the worst drought since World War II, with the country’s longest Po river drying up and a once-submerged wartime 1,000-pound bomb in sight.

that Destroyed Although it was about 30 miles away from where it was found, about 3,000 people living nearby were evacuated so military experts could safely disarm the device.