Germany plans evacuation of 70,000 to remove WWII-era bomb

Aug. 31 (UPI) -- The discovery of an unexploded World War II-era bomb will cause the temporary evacuation of about 70,000 people in Germany this weekend, police said.

The 1.8-ton British bomb, over six feet in length, was discovered on a construction site near Frankfurt's Goethe University. It will be defused and removed on Sunday morning.

Frankfurt police said that there is currently no danger to the public, but about one-tenth of the city's population will be evacuated while the bomb is taken care of.

The bomb is an HC 4000 air mine, nicknamed "Wohnbockknacker," for its capability to wipe out an entire street. It's being housed in a blue tent near downtown Frankfurt, about four miles from the city's major shopping mall.

Two hospitals and Germany's Federal Reserve Bank are within evacuation zone.

Although World War II ended in 1945, similar British ordnance is occasionally found in Germany in construction projects.

About 50,000 people were evacuated from the city of Augsburg on Christmas Day in 2016 after a blockbuster bomb was found beneath an underground parking lot. In May 2017, another bomb, found in Hanover during pre-construction work on a building, forced another evacuation.