The operation could become the largest ever organized in the Ruhr area. Some 13,000 people are due to be evacuated from their home in Dortmund, Germany on Sunday after local authorities discover suspected sites of unexploded bombs dating from World War II.
In a statement posted online, the city of Dortmund in the west of the country said it had identified four locations where the unexploded bombs dropped by the Allied air forces decades ago could be buried. The suspicions are based on "anomalies" detected during construction work. "Only excavations" can confirm the existence of bombs, according to the press release.
A protective wall of containers around the area
The area to be evacuated corresponds to a large part of the city center, including Dortmund main station and the National Football Museum. The station will be closed Sunday morning and the trains diverted to avoid the city. Residents living within a 500-meter radius of each suspect site must leave their homes before 8:00 a.m. on Sunday, with excavation work scheduled to start later in the day. Preparations were in full swing on Saturday, with the evacuation by ambulance of 58 patients from two hospitals and residents of two retirement homes. The town hall has posted images of containers intended to form a protective wall around the sensitive area.
The discovery of World War II bombs is common in Germany. In 2017, 65,000 people were evacuated, in the largest such operation since 1945, when a huge 1.4-tonne British bomb was discovered in Frankfurt. In September, a 250 kg explosive device was defused in Hanover, an operation which required the evacuation of 15,000 people.
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