London homes near Wembley evacuated after WWII bomb is found (link fixed)
Source: NY Times
LONDON (AP) British police have closed roads and evacuated hundreds of homes near London's Wembley Stadium as the army works to defuse an unexploded World War II bomb.
The 50-kilogram (110-pound) bomb was discovered by builders working near the stadium. It is believed to have been dropped over London during German bombing raids in the early 1940s.
An army spokesman said the bomb is in a "potentially dangerous condition" and that even under a controlled explosion it could cause significant damage to property and a "genuine risk to life." A cordon has been placed around the site and bomb disposal experts were working Friday to defuse the device.
Read more: http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/E/EU_BRITAIN_WWII_BOMB?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT
OOPS.
marym625
(17,997 posts)Glad they saw it before the construction company accidentally set it off.
How scary to think a 50 year old bomb could blow up now. I would imagine there are others that didn't explode that have not been found.
sarge43
(28,939 posts)Last edited Fri May 22, 2015, 09:50 AM - Edit history (1)
They're still turning up in German cities. The gift that keeps on giving.
Particularly dangerous are the buried pockets of mustard gas left over from WWI. The gas would settled in craters and an explosion would cause dirt to cover it. When they're uncovered and occasionally they still are, the gas can still do its thing.
I knew that bombs were a problem, just didn't know they were in the UK. Though I guess I should have.
But mustard gas! Holy shit.
I hate war. When are leaders going to get that it's no answer?
melm00se
(4,974 posts)sarge43
(28,939 posts)marym625
(17,997 posts)I appreciate it
MADem
(135,425 posts)Not a lotta fun, but they managed to defuse the thing in short order.
sarge43
(28,939 posts)"Alive and well and living in sin."
Warpy
(110,909 posts)and will probably keep discovering them from time to time for many decades.
I wonder if they discovered it during one of these:
Eleanors38
(18,318 posts)I had no idea
Eleanors38
(18,318 posts)Of more "stable" and far more powerful smokeless powders. Blackpowder lasting that long is a bit mind-boggling.
marym625
(17,997 posts)melm00se
(4,974 posts)the Nazis dropped approximately 30,000 bombs in the London area.
There are probably quite a few unexploded bombs still laying in wait.
PatSeg
(46,804 posts)ever since I was kid. It is mind-boggling that over 70 years later, they are still finding them. Must be very unsettling for people living in London or other cities where they were dropped.
Constant reminders of the stupidity of war.
dembotoz
(16,739 posts)Javaman
(62,439 posts)Omaha Steve
(99,071 posts)Fixed.
csziggy
(34,120 posts)It could be something worse!
MADem
(135,425 posts)About 35 years ago, there used to be a show on UK tv called DANGER UXB....you can relive those thrilling episodes on YOUTUBE today! Such fun!
dembotoz
(16,739 posts)on you tube.....binge on the way
looked at getting the dvds
always cost too much
most big time thanks
MADem
(135,425 posts)dembotoz
(16,739 posts)Thanks
Made my week
MADem
(135,425 posts)Telcontar
(660 posts)tasked with recovering and destroying UXOd and abandoned munitions left from second half of the Great European Civil War. I remember an interview with their commander, an American major IIRC, that said they would stay busy well into the next century. Looks like he was right.
One day in the life of a ammo man, Vietnam mid sixties: Fourteen hours straight, uncrating and storing Mk 82s (500lbs GP bombs). Figuring one in a thousand will dud out. Multiply that by the millions of times that went on through out the world during the 20th century. That's a lot of UXOs.
GliderGuider
(21,088 posts)What an appropriate way of framing it!
Telcontar
(660 posts)You can really lump in all conflict from Franco-Prussian War 1870 through the end of the Cold War as a single conflict. It was a struggle on how Europe was going to be governed and by whom. Funny thing is, you can really make the case that Germany ultimately won. But only by losing.