WWII bomb defused in central Berlin

The second World War ended almost seven decades ago but, almost every month, a deadly reminder is uncovered somewhere in Germany.

Yesterday it was Berlin’s turn. Traffic in the centre of the German capital came to a standstill for several hours while the capital’s bomb disposal experts defused a live 100kg Soviet bomb.

“It was uncovered during building works for a new suburban train line on Tuesday afternoon,” said Berlin police spokesman Stefan Redlich.

“Whenever any construction work like this takes place there are always special teams on hand to check the ground.”

Near train track
The unexploded bomb lay a metre under the sandy Berlin soil and two metres from a train track leading into the city's central station.

Yesterday morning, police fanned out through the neighbourhood north of the train station to evacuate more than 800 people from their homes and offices. Dozens of long-distance trains were diverted away from the bomb site, and some 20 flights were delayed and others diverted while the defusing operation took place.

After an initial inspection, the three-man bomb disposal team unscrewed the mechanical fuse and gave the all-clear at about 1.30pm.

It was just another day at the office for Dietmar Püpke, head of the bomb disposal team. “It was a normal defusing job, a typical Russian bomb and the detonator wasn’t bent out of shape or anything,” he said. “When I’m working I just block everything else and concentrate on what has to be done.”

Had it been accidentally triggered, the bomb could have caused serious damage, leaving a crater four metres wide and three metres deep.

After it was removed, minus its detonator, the bomb was taken to Grunewald forest outside the city for a controlled explosion. The metal shell will be recycled.

Last August, a bomb with an unstable fuse was found in central Munich and had to be detonated, causing damage to neighbouring buildings.