50,000 Germans return home after WWII bombs removed from town

May 7 (UPI) -- More than 50,000 people evacuated from a town in Germany returned to their homes Sunday after officials removed several unexploded World War II bombs.

A total of three unexploded bombs were removed from a construction site in the center of town. Officials initially suspected two more bombs were buried beneath a nearby park, but a search on Sunday turned up nothing.

Hanover officials told residents and businesses to make sure their water, electricity and gas supplies were turned off. The evacuations represented about a 10th of the city's population.

Allied planes bombed Hanover heavily during the war. On Oct. 9, 1943, a total 1,245 people were killed and 250,000 left homeless by 261,000 bombs.

Bomb disposal expert Chris Hunter said the high explosives have been dormant for years but they often have booby-trap mechanisms and can detonate at any time.

"It's inherently dangerous," he said.

Last Christmas, a 2-ton bomb dropped by Britain forced the evacuation of more than 54,000 people out of the southern city of Augsberg. It took 4 hours for it to be defused.

It was the nation's biggest evacuation since the second war.